Oceans Calling
by author2be3
Summary: Ahiru the mermaid is fascinated by the human world that she is sworn to never interact with. But after saving a human from downing and accidentally falling under a spell to lose her tail, Ahiru now has to adjust to human life while trying to break the spell and avoiding the suspicious Freya. Can she keep from getting too close to her new friends and return home to the sea?
1. Ordinary Day

Rue tossed the book of swatches to the ground with an annoyed grunt. The anxious wedding planner scampered to the floor to save his precious tool from being tarnished by any unknown dirt. Rue thought her head was going to explode!

She sighed and pinched the bridge of her nose. "Mr. Cat, why don't we pick this up tomorrow?"  
After snatching up his book, Mr. Cat looked at his client. "If you wish Ms. Rue."  
Mr. Cat gathered up his belongings and walked out the door.

Rue massaged her temples. She knew planning a wedding wouldn't be easy, but who knew it would be this aggravating! Maybe she shouldn't do this all by herself? Maybe she should call up her dad and ask for his help? But then she thought of her dad's lack of style, sense, and… well frankly, lack of humanity, and thought better of it.

Her dad hated it when he found out about her engagement to Mytho. He even tried to get her brother to talk her out of it! Luckily her younger brother, Fakir, was just as stubborn as she was and politely told their dad to go screw himself if he didn't approve. Yeah, she loved her brother…

But for now, knowing that there was literally nothing she could be done in this situation, she had to do this alone. Unless Fakir had miraculously grown a wedding planner nerve somewhere in his body.  
Rue let out another moan as she flopped on the couch.  
"Still struggling with the planning, sis?" Fakir said as he entered in the living room.

"Don't you dare start!" Rue snapped.  
Fakir chuckled a bit, "I'm telling you, a jousting tournament would work perfectly!"  
"And I'm telling you to take this wedding seriously, you twit!"

Fakir just kept laughing.  
Fakir leaned his head over his sister's. "How about a break? We can go outside, I can get the boards, invite Mytho and Freya-"  
"You had me until you mentioned her." Rue said sourly.  
"Aw come one Rue. You're going to have to get used to her if she's going to be in the wedding."

Rue let out a sigh, "Fine…"

It had probably taken a good 20 minutes to get everything ready.  
In case you were wondering, Rue lived by the beach. This was mostly rooted in the fact that she and her brother loved to surf and the stories their mother used to tell. And once she turned 18 and found her own path to make money, you better believe she planned to live on the beach for the rest of her days.  
Mytho wasn't much of a surfer, but he always loved to watch Fakir and Rue glide along the waves.

Freya, Fakir's girlfriend, wasn't very fond of the beach. Specifically the water… and the fishy smell… and the sand getting everywhere, or at least that's what she told them. Rue always thought Freya was a bit of a killjoy when they went to the beach with her. Mostly because she'd say next to nothing, hold a look of distain on her face, and not even watch Fakir trying to show off to her.  
In case you couldn't tell, Freya rubbed Rue the wrong way most of the time. But Rue saw how happy Fakir seemed to be with her and who was she to try and run her brother's life.

The weather was absolutely perfect! And the waves were alive with large roars of collisions.

As Fakir and Rue went about on the waves, they had no idea of the pair of fine blue eyes watching from a distance among the waters.  
In fact, no one on the shore noticed the bright face full of curiosity and wonder as the siblings continued to glide over the water on their boards. And if any of those people noticed her, they probably would be in absolute shock upon seeing her, and that was because of the simple fact that this stranger was a mermaid!

This mermaid, who went by the name of Ahiru, didn't exactly own a gorgeous face, but she was pretty. She had fair skin, bright orange hair tied back into a tight braid, and a stunning silver tail.

The gills on the side of her rib cage flared as the surfers continued to amaze her. But the one that kept her attention the most was the boy with long dark hair. He was incredible with all his moves! It was easy to tell he was trying to get the attention of the girl on the shore. From what the young mermaid could tell, she looked enchanting with her long blond locks and slim figure. Must be why he was trying so hard with these tricks. So why was she ignoring him? Isn't it a wonderful thing to humans to have someone strive to want them? The whole situation was puzzling to Ahiru.

She watched them constantly. It was sort of a habit to come to the surface and watch the humans do this strange ritual on the waves. They charmed her more than any spell she ever cast.

At that thought, Ahiru fingered one of the pearls around her neck, specifically the one that held the spell she had just activated in order to watch the humans… the invisibility spell.

Being a silver tailed mermaid meant you were destined to be a spell caster among the merpeople. You were to create spells and trap them within pearls and be easy access for merpeople to use. Such was a lonely life with only your mentors and your family… if you were lucky. But Ahiru's skill severely lacked when it came to trapping spells into their correct pearls. Her barren necklace only had her conch shell and maybe three pearls on it.

Ahiru sighed and removed her hand from the pearl. At that moment, her conch began to sing. Ahiru quickly dived underwater. Once she was deep enough, she unclipped the shell from her necklace and held it out. Small lights began to escape from the shell's opening that surrounded Ahiru. A familiar voice echoed through the lights.

"Ahiru! Where are you?" It was Ms. Edel.  
"Ms. Edel! I was uh… nowhere in particular…" Ahiru wasn't very good at lying.  
Ahiru could hear an annoyed sigh.  
"I've already lectured you about the human world before. Please don't make me do it again…"  
"You don't have to! I used the invisibly spell… and I kept a huge distance from them!" Ahiru said hastily.

"And it worked? Ahiru that's wonderful!" Ms. Edel cleared her throat, "I need you over here right away."  
"More training?" Ahiru moaned.  
"You'll never get better if you don't practice my dear." Ms. Edel said sweetly.  
"I'll be there soon…"

The small lights began to clump together and sink back into the conch shell. Ahiru clicked the shell back onto her necklace, deactivated the spell, and headed out towards Ms. Edel's.

Ahiru disappeared among the seaweed and arrived in Ms. Edel's underwater jewel cave.  
Ms. Edel was floating over a bright upward crater from the ground (rather like a cauldron) swirling what looked like multi-colored smoke. Her silver scales shined amongst the glow.

Her face brightened upon seeing her student.  
"I'd like to see your invisibility spell in action." She said warmly.

"Oh!" Ahiru quickly fumbled around her necklace until she plucked at her newest pearl. She closed her eyes and concentrated hard. When her eyes opened, Ms. Edel smile grew wide.  
"Splendid, Ahiru! Absolutely splendid!"

Ahiru quickly deactivated the spell and took a clumsy bow. When she picked up her head, she noticed the color smoke again. "Ms. Edel, what were you working on?"  
Ms. Edel seemed to find a struggle with her words. "If you must know…" She began, "I was testing the only magic that can't seem to be contained."

Ahiru gave her teacher a sideways glance until she remembered her basic training. "Emotions?"  
Her teacher nodded.  
"But you already have emotions Ms. Edel. Don't you?"  
"I suppose." The older mermaid said as she tended back to her cauldron, "But then, how much of it is coming from this well of feelings?"

You see, one of the rare tropes of the silver tailed merpeople was that they would lose their emotions overtime. Some say it was because of them constantly playing with spells, other say it had to deal with lacking contact with merpeople. But regardless of the reason, it was a disease they had yet to find the cure for. And Ms. Edel was getting closer to her time when she too would lose hers.

Ahiru swam over towards the curling smoke. She fiddled with it as it made strange shapes from the water pressure. She watched as it escaped her fingers amongst every motion.

The smoke was hypnotizing. She could understand why Ms. Edel would be playing with something she was slowly losing.  
Ms. Edel soon pulled her student back to her attention. "I didn't call you over to play with emotions. We have training to do. There's going to be a rainstorm today, and we'll need to prepare for it."

Ms. Edel passed her hand over the cauldron and it began to close itself inwards.  
"Let's try a protection spell as a warm up." Ms. Edel said as she swam over to retrieve a book from her shelf.  
"Where would you use this spell, Ahiru?"

Ahiru took a deep breath, "Angered sea creatures, human nets, or any emergency involving an attack from another merperson."  
"Good," the mentor said, leafing through the pages, "What kind of pearl would you trap the spell in?"  
Ahiru paused to find her answer, "A yellow one?"

Ms. Edel didn't say anything at first. The student's heart dropped into her stomach.  
"That is correct." Ms. Edel held out a yellow pearl for Ahiru to take. She also handed her the book that contained the spell. "Now you must sing to the pearl. But only to the pearl! You understand what will happen if you don't."

"Yes Ms. Edel, I know." Ahiru said gently. She took a deep breath through her gills and turned her focus to the pearl. She sang the incantation as best as she could, keeping in mind of tune and rhythm, as the pearl began to glow. By the time the last note was reached the pearl began to vibrate. A fear slowly began to rise in Ahiru. If she couldn't contain the vibrations, the pearl would shatter and the spell would fail… like everything usually did for her.  
Ahiru snapped her focus back to the pearl, pushing the fear down. She would get this one right! She was sure of it!

The last note ended, and the pearl was still in one piece. Ms. Edel took the pearl between her thumb and index finger, and concentrated hard. A silver shield grew around her. The spell was a success!

The shield vanished and Ms. Edel handed the pearl back to her student. "Well done. This is yours now."  
Ahiru happily took it, and clipped it to her necklace.

Another spell down, a million more to go…

* * *

A/N: I think is a good as any place to stop for the moment. I'm going to try and make these chapters a little bit longer than usual, but I can't do too much right now since I'm drowning in homework. *sigh* Such is the life of a college student. Anyway, I'll post chapter two soon, I promise!

Until then, let me know what your thoughts are so far! Thank you so much for reading!


	2. Foreshock

"How much longer are we going to be here?" Freya asked while picking at the nails. Mytho looked over at his companion on the shore.  
"You know, you could enjoy yourself more if you watched your boyfriend out there." He answered trying to keep his patience.  
"I'd prefer him here, away from any smelly, salty water."  
Mytho groaned, "Then why not leave and wait for everyone to come back since you're so sick of this."  
Freya looked offended, "And leave _my_ Fakir alone when he comes back!?"  
"Okay, fine! Whatever."

Mytho went back to watching his fiancé and future brother-in-law ride the waves. Things seemed to be fine so far. Besides the oncoming dark clouds bringing rain, nothing seemed so bad. But unknowing to the surface dwellers, under the sea water the blue tailed merpeople were using their pearls to bring in the oncoming storm. However, what would seem like a small rain storm would turn into thunderous mess!

With a few silver tailed merpeople observing the weather spells they created in their user's hands, Ahiru watched nervously as her newly created pearl was handed off without having been tested. She watched as the weather merpeople lined up and begun to activate their magic. Ahiru could feel the water evaporate towards the sky. Begin so close to the surface, the merpeople could see the clouds forming over them.

The weather team made their move towards the shore. And Ahiru, along with other silver tailed merpeople, followed close by. The storm dragged behind.

Rue took notice of the clouds. After pulling herself off her current wave (no bad pun intended), she called out to her brother. "Fakir, we should bring it in! That storm looks pretty bad!"  
"You worry too much!" He called back to her, "Just a few more then we can head out!"  
"You'll get yourself killed, idiot! Let's go!"  
"I'll join you in a bit!"

Rue shook her head, his stubbornness could get him really hurt if he continued to act this way. She chose instead the head back to shore and wait on Fakir to come back. No doubt she would get an earful from Freya about leaving him out there, but she just might get through it with Mytho there.

Ahiru watched her pearl as they got closer to shore. That was where it all went wrong.  
The merman who held onto Ahiru's pearl stopped swimming, causing the rest to halt. The storm was still not close enough to shore. The merman pulled his hand closer to his face to observe what was happening with his pearl. It was vibrating violently and changing different colors. Some of the other merpeople gathered around him, staring at the pearl curiously. Fear began to cripple Ahiru's nerves. To try and get ahold of herself, she swam closer to the merman to try and examine her creation.

But she wasn't quick enough.

The pearl shattered, knocking back several, if not all, the weather merpeople back. This meant that the storm no longer had a master. It took on a new more violent form of storm, one at which the merpeople had to run back and regroup.

As for our surface dwellers… well, the storm found it would be able to take at least one victim.  
The waves rocked haphazardly as the rain and wind mixed together for an even more dangerous attack.  
Fakir clutched his board as he desperately swam back to shore. The storm began to ripple much more, so much so that Fakir's board decided to jab upward on Fakir, upper cutting his face and knocking him unconscious.

The merpeople began to panic even more, as silver tails began to create new pearls as fast as they could to silence the storm. But as for Ahiru herself, she tried to swim opposite of the crowd. She felt she couldn't be of much help, seeing as it was her pearl that caused the damage. Not realizing how close to shore she was, she noticed something…

A floater…?

She paddled closer.  
Her gills flared in shock. It was a human! And not just any human, but the one who she watched almost all the time! His body was upside down in the water. That flat thing he would stand on was nowhere in sight.

Ahiru hesitated. He would drown if she didn't do anything, but what if he saw her as a mermaid? She would already get hounded on for screwing up the storm, there's no telling what would happen if anyone found out she not only got near a human, but _saved_ one!

She looked over her shoulder for a second, then made her choice.  
Ahiru slipped her arm over his back and slid his arm over her shoulders. Carefully holding onto him, she shot out towards shore. The storm was a lot worse than she had imagined. The waves and winds threatened her rescue mission, but she tore on ahead.

As far as Ahiru could tell, she couldn't see anyone on shore, especially now that the storm had reached the land. Desperate to bring her temporary companion back, she pushed on her fins with all her might to get to the sands!

After what felt like ages, Ahiru was able to flop onto shore, placing the human boy on top of the sand. The storm was getting lighter, but a few gentle rain drops remained. Ahiru placed two fingers on his neck.

A faint heartbeat. He was still alive! But was he breathing?

She looked down at his lips. There was a nasty cut down the center. But it didn't look like it was moving. Inclining her ear to his mouth she listened for a breath.

…nothing…

Ahiru bit her lip. There was a spell she could sing to him, but she ran a dangerous risk. Singing to a human could possibly have her banished from the ocean. Ahiru glanced all around her. No sign of anyone. She sighed, she couldn't let him die.

 _ **Breathe again lost one  
Breathe again fading one**_

 _ **Take in the life you need**_  
 _ **Let you not your soul bleed**_

 _ **Don't let your light flicker out**_  
 _ **Breathe again, with my air out**_

 _ **Take my air  
Forbid death's cold stare **_

At that moment, Ahiru breathed into the human. Her lips touched his, as she was literally left breathless. As she pulled away, she felt something on her lips that her tongue barely touched. That little taste was aweful! Almost bizarre!

She touched her lip, and whipped whatever was there away. She only saw a hint of red on the back of her hand. She shrugged it off and looked over at the human.  
Good, he was breathing again!

Taking her leave and bracing herself for the humiliation of a lifetime, she moved back into the water. As she began to try and submerge herself under, she felt strange… almost like she couldn't breathe. She began to feel a split down her tail. She curled herself over to get a better look at her tail. But it seemed to be disappearing!  
Fear swelling up inside, she felt her sides for her gills. They were closed… as if they too were not even there! No longer being able to breathe, Ahiru shot up back to the surface. Once she was freed of the water, she sucked in surface air! What was the meaning of this!?  
She kicked her tail up, only to find a pair of legs!

Oh no! Had someone seen what she did and forced her banishment?!  
Ahiru swam back to shore. As she crawled onto land, she felt her heart falling out of her chest. How could this happen? How was she going to adjust to such a life of shame?! Was this punishment for saving someone!

The pain and confusion of everything overwhelmed her and sent her into darkness…

* * *

A/N: I'm going to try to post a chapter every week or two. (Or until I write the next of the later chapters. I'm on chapter 7 right now...) In the mean time I would love to hear your feed back on this story so far.

And if you're really bored, you can check out the poll I put up. Just some silly ideas I had, you know?

Thank you so much to:  
AnimeaMari for reviewing (I was actually considering doing that, but then I changed my mind. Sorry...)  
maskedvigilanteprincess864 for following  
James Birdsong for reviewing (I'm glad you like it so far!)  
TheRookieKing412 for reviewing and following (I'm really happy to hear someone be so excited about one of my stories before it even happened! I hope this second chapter lived up to your expectations!)  
AdeliaAira for following  
Ern Estine 13624 for reviewing and following (I hope you didn't have to wait too long! I'm thrilled you like it so far!)  
And most importantly you for reading this far with me!


	3. Awakening

" _Do you think she's alright?"_

" _Is she even alive?"_

" _Where did she come from? That storm?"_

These questions buzzed in the air as Ahiru started to come back to consciousness. She could feel a heavy but soft cloth over her. She couldn't smell the salty water, or hear the rushing waves. She didn't feel the loose sand beneath her. She was defiantly not where she remembered collapsing.  
Ahiru then reached to feel her gills.

Still gone…

But even stranger was this… thing that covered her. Not just the giant cloth, but this other thing… that fit around her… it might be like one of those things the humans would wear. What were they called? Shirts…?

Ahiru tried to pick herself up as whatever she was on top of sunk a bit as she pushed down… wait what?

"Hey," someone said, "She's waking up!"

Ahiru looked around. There were four people in the room, the same humans she liked to watch! There was the young woman with black hair sitting next to her. The young man with white hair standing behind her. That blond girl in the back of the room sitting in a chair and…

Ahiru's eyes grew three sizes upon seeing the dark haired boy standing next to the blond girl… the one she saved.

"Hey," The girl sitting next to her said, "Are you okay?"  
Ahiru turned towards her. "I… I…" Ahiru quickly swallowed her fear and tried to speak again.  
"Sorry… what happened?"

"We found you on shore after the storm." She explained, "We brought you in. We were hoping you could fill us in on what happened to you…"  
Ahiru wasn't sure what to say… she was talking to humans! She can't tell them what happened! Even if… even if she was possibly banished from the seas. But what could she say? She was a terrible liar to begin with, so there's no way she could trick them. But maybe…

"I… I don't know…"  
"So… you don't remember?" The dark haired boy asked rather tersely, "That crazy storm hits and you show up… *ahem* naked… and you remember _nothing_?!"

The girl sitting next to Ahiru turned towards him, "Fakir! Don't talk to her like that! She was clearly in an accident."  
"Whatever." The human named Fakir said.  
Wow, Ahiru got her life completely ruined to save this guy, and this is how he acts? What a bull shark!

"Don't mind him." The girl said, "My name is Rue. This is Mytho, my fiancé. The bitter one is my brother, Fakir and his girlfriend Freya. Do you remember your name?"

Ahiru bit her lip… should she tell them her name? Rue seemed like someone she could trust, but… was it even good to be talking to any of them? After sitting on it for a moment, it seemed like now there could be no turning back. She'd already lost her tail, her home, and much more before, but these people welcomed her with open arms.

"My name… is Ahiru."  
"Ahiru," The human named Mytho echoed, "That's an interesting name. Do you remember anything else?"

Ahiru looked at him with worried eyes. Yes, she remembered everything! But she couldn't tell any of them that. So she looked down, and shook her head.  
Mytho only shrugged, "That's okay. Maybe you'll remember things in time."  
Rue looked over to Mytho, "Maybe we should step out for a second." She turned back to Ahiru, "We'll get you something to eat, and maybe later talk about trying to find your family. Okay?"  
"Okay…"

As the others began to walk out, Freya remained behind.  
"So," Freya said as she tossed her hair, "what did you do to lose your tail?"  
Ahiru froze, unsure of what Freya was asking. "Huh?"

"Come on. Fess up mermaid! What did you do?!"  
Ahiru swallowed, "I-I-I… um… don't understand."

Freya rolled her eyes, "You're a terrible liar." She strolled over to Ahiru and began stroking and pulling on her red hair. "Fine… if you wish to play human, be my guest. But just so you know, humans don't always play nice!" She hissed in Ahiru's ear.

Ahiru felt a sharp chill run down her spine that left her paralyzed to Freya's voice. She got a hold of herself as Freya began to walk away.  
"How do you- What makes you _think_ I'm a mermaid?" She finally go out.  
Freya turned back around, her green eye's piercing where Ahiru sat.

"I've done my homework. You show up from out of nowhere after a storm, naked on a beach, the conch shell around your neck, you playing dumb. It's obvious to one who once whispered the secret knowledge of your kind!"

Ahiru was silent. Legend said only a few humans actually knew of merpeople's existence… does that mean Freya was one of them? Ahiru breathed in. How was she supposed to approach this topic with Freya?  
"How do you know so much?" She finally said.  
"I already told you! But if we're asking questions, answer mine! What did you do to lose your tail?"

"I… I sang to Fakir…" Ahiru mumbled, "I sang the breath of life incantation…"  
Freya's face turned red. Her eyes narrowed in anger. "You. Did. WHAT?!"  
Ahiru refused to meet Freya's scornful glare. She remained silent as Freya's anger boiled over.  
"Alright… fine! Cross all the lines you want, sea wench! Just remember what I said, _humans don't play nice with mermaids!_ "

And Ahiru was left alone.

* * *

Rue and Mytho were gathering what they could to help take care of Ahiru. Fakir just sat back and watched. Freya walked in saying in an aggravated tone, "That girl is weird."  
"You said it!" Fakir replied.

Rue put down the cup she had just filled with water.  
"What's gotten into you, Fakir?"  
"What are you talking about?"

"You should be grateful you survived that storm! For all we know, she could have been the reason you made it out alive! And besides, she can't remember anything. The least we can do is help her!"

"You want to baby sit the strange kid, go right ahead. I'm not dealing with that!"

Rue narrowed her eyes, not at Fakir, but at Freya. As if to say: _I know you have something to do with his newly acquired rotten attitude!_ Freya only tossed her hair and looked the other way.  
"So what are you going to do with her?" Freya finally asked, still not looking at Rue.  
"We'll take care of her until she gets her memory back. Then we can try and get her family back together." Mytho answered.

A devious smile creeped across Freya's lips for a moment.  
"And what if she never remembers?"  
"Then I guess we find a way to help her help herself."

"Why not start with that then?" Fakir frowned.  
Rue couldn't stand it any longer. She let out a sigh and said, "Mytho, Freya, would you leave us for a minute?"

The two silently stepped out of the room. Once they were alone, Rue finally snapped.  
"I don't know what your problem is, but if you're going to keep this heartless douche bag attitude, you might as well go back home to dad! He'll appreciate it greatly!"

Fakir was thrown off for a moment, "Are you comparing me to him?"  
"No, what would give you that idea!?" Sarcasm dripped from her voice.  
"Well excuse me for being realistic!"  
"Realistic?! That has nothing to do with it! You're just acting this way because Freya doesn't like her!"

Now Fakir was ticked, "Why are you bringing Freya into this? She did-"  
"Because ever since she showed up, you've been changing for the worst! The brother I knew wouldn't leave someone like Ahiru alone out there with no help!"

"Well, what do you want me to do sis?! This is who I am now!"  
"Then who you are now should get an attitude check!" She shouted as the grabbed the glass and tossed the water over his face.  
Fakir shook off as much of the water as he could.  
"Get dried off, and take this tray to Ahiru. You're going to go talk to her too."

Fakir sighed, "Fine…"

* * *

A/N: These next couple of chapters are going to be kind of dull, sorry… In the mean time, say some prayers for the world everyone. Don't be scared or angry, just have hope (like Ahiru!).  
I want to give a big thank you to:

Ern Estine 13624 for reviewing (this chapter was probably not as awesome, but I'm glad you enjoyed the last one!)  
TheRookieKing412 for reviewing (I'm thrilled to see you're so excited! Actually to be quite honest I borrowed the blood thing from a different movie actually. The next chapter just might give it away ;) )  
AnimeaMari for reviewing (And that's all I could ask for!)  
PaintSpatterings for following  
mayuralover for reviewing and following (to answer your question: I have no clue what this is, I guess it's a modern AU. I have a general idea of what I'm doing, but not much else. I'm really happy to know you like it so far!)  
shadowshades for following

And you for reading this far with me! Be safe everyone!


	4. The Promise

After Fakir got himself dried off, he took the small trey carrying a small bowl full of crackers, a plate with a sandwich on it, and a new glass full of water. Rue watched with a demanding look as he picked up the trey and looked back at her. Rue didn't say a word. She pointed at the guest bedroom. Fakir sighed and carried the trey to the room.

Fakir was close enough to the door to hear the springs of the bed straining…. Wait, was she jumping on the bed? He opened the door to find Ahiru not jumping, but rather she was pushing and feeling the mattress as if it was a foreign object she had never seen before.  
"What are you doing?" He said trying to hold back the annoyance in his voice.  
Ahiru picked her head up. "I was um… just… curious…"  
Fakir raised an eyebrow, "It's just like any other mattress." He stated.  
Ahiru looked at him in utter confusion, trying to mouth the word he just spoke back to him. Fakir was even more lost. "Do… do you even know what a bed is?"

Ahiru began to turn red as she looked away. Fakir eyed her even more now.

Man, this chick was weird.

Changing the subject quickly so the weirdness wasn't in the air for too long, Fakir spoke up.  
"I brought you something to eat. You hungry?"  
Ahiru turned her head back to him but didn't say anything.

Fakir could easily tell Ahiru was uncomfortable with him helping her. Was it… because she heard that shouting match outside? Because of how they found her after the storm and she's really embarrassed by it? Or was he just that intimidating?

"Um… did you hear any of that outside?" He asked.  
Ahiru looked down, "A little…" There was a pause before Ahiru continued, "What… what will you do if I never get my memory back?"  
Fakir put the tray on the night stand and sat down on the edge of the bed. "We'll figure something out. I'm sure you'll remember." He said gently, "Just… be patient."

You could tell Fakir was mentally weighing if he should hug her… or something. Finally he settled for patting her ankle.  
Ahiru looked at him puzzlingly. "You're being nice to me… but you don't like me?"  
"What makes you think that I don't like you?"  
"You and Freya said I'm weird. Plus you said you don't want to 'deal with me'."  
Fakir felt a knot in his stomach. "Well, sometimes that's how guys show they like a girl…" He said trying to cover up that terrible feeling. Ahiru brought back her puzzled look.  
"That… doesn't make any sense. If you like someone you act like you like them. If you don't, you act like you have around me."

That last comment was a great slap to the face. No way was Ahiru giving him any way out of this one. Rue was right… he has been heartless lately.  
He sighed, "I'm sorry about that. I guess I'm just trying to figure your situation out."

"They why didn't you just ask?" Ahiru said, then hastily added, "I mean… I don't have any answers but still! Lying like that only makes starting friendships harder."

Well, Fakir was defiantly not expecting that. "Wait… so are we friends now?"  
Ahiru straightened up, "That depends on how we treat each other. If I treat you with respect, will you strive to do the same to me?"  
"Okay… From this point on I'll treat you like a friend." He said as he stuck out his hand.  
Ahiru watched his hand for a few seconds. "Then I'll do the same." She said as she smiled and connected her hand to his.  
After they shook on it Ahiru added, "That's a promise now. So don't break it!"

Fakir couldn't help but smile at this. There was no telling how old this girl was, but her innocence was just so adorable! He reached over to the night stand and picked up a small bowl that was on the trey and placed it in her lap. "Here. You should at least eat something."

Ahiru examined the contents of the bowl with an array of confusion and curiosity. "Why are these things shaped like tiny fish?"  
"Its goldfish." He answered, "They're crackers shaped like fish."  
Ahiru blinked, trying to figure these 'crackers' out. Finally, she tried one. After she swallowed, she looked back at her new friend, "You guys eat this _all_ the time?"  
"No… not all the time. You don't like it?"  
"It's different." Ahiru ate a few more and before she knew it, the bowl was empty.

"Well that was fast. Still hungry?" He asked.  
Ahiru's stomach answered that question for her.  
"Well, good thing Rue made you a sandwich. And she's fairly good at that, I might add."

Fakir reached for the sandwich and placed it in her lap. Ahiru stared at for a while. She lifted the bread to get a better look at its inner contents. Fakir watched her dissect her food while trying to hold down the confusion. But to be perfectly honest, he found the whole thing really amusing.  
"It's a ham sandwich. You've heard of that, right?"  
Ahiru stopped picking apart the sandwich, and picked it up whole getting ready to eat. "Ham?"

"Right…" Fakir said as she took a bite.  
Ahiru's eyes got big after getting her first taste. "This is ham?" She asked.  
"Yeah, you like it?"  
Ahiru took another bite and nodded really fast. Fakir only chuckled.

In between bites, Fakir and Ahiru would chat with whatever random topic that crossed their minds. Usually it consisted of Ahiru asking a weird question that seemed obvious to any normal human being. But since you and I (and Freya) know better, we'll let it pass. And the nice thing was that Fakir was catching on that she didn't know everything and wanted to know more.

The thing about hanging out with Ahiru was actually really refreshing to Fakir. She was just so pure hearted and curious. He guessed that that storm must have gotten her to forget a lot of things. (Again you, Freya, and I know better, but it's cute regardless)

"Can I ask you a few questions? I know you won't be able to answer all of them, but just to try." Fakir asked. Ahiru shrugged her shoulders, and Fakir went on ahead.

"How old are you?"  
Ahiru paused for a moment. Not because she was scared, but because she had to count in human years how old she was.  
"16… I think."  
"Huh, one year younger than me. Do you have any family… that you remember?"

Ahiru sat for a minute. How was she going to answer this? She has to play dumb so she seemed normal, but she had already revealed she does now some things. Did she want to share this truth with him? Was she even ready to share that?

"I… I think I remember a mentor. Though not much else…"  
"No parents, or siblings?"  
Ahiru shook her head. Fakir sighed.  
"One last question. Have you ever had anyone special?"  
Ahiru looked confused, "You mean like a best friend?"  
"No, more like… someone you had a romantic interest in. Even if it's just a crush."

Now Ahiru was even more lost. "I don't really understand. Romantic? Crush? I'm not sure I've heard of that…"  
Fakir cocked his head to the side, "You don't know what that is either?"  
"I've heard of romance, but that's not real…"

Fakir's presence seemed to change, "Oh… I think I get it… You've been hurt, or… maybe you've seen someone get hurt?"

"No… I mean, it's _really_ not real. And even if it did, I'd just lose it later anyway."  
"What do you mean you'd lose it later?"

Ahiru quickly realized her mistake. Shellfish! How was she going to explain about her enviable fate as a silver tailed mermaid if she can't talk about mermaids?!

"I… I mean… the emotion just fades over time doesn't it? I… I think my mentor said something like that once…"  
Fakir was really not sure what to make of Ahiru. Most of the time, she acted like a sweet innocent girl, but then this… sounded like someone who had been battered and beaten all throughout life, as if the well of hope she had shown to him before had dried up. What had happened to her to hold such a broken part of life with her even with her missing memories?

"Well… I think it only goes away when you let it. You have to fight to keep it together."

Ahiru tilted her head. Is that how humans see it? Maybe it's because they don't lose their emotions the way merpeople do, but… then he talks like they do? If they have to fight to keep love, does that mean they can still keep it alive? So how do they lose it if not through natural reasons? Do they give into other emotions, or personal things like selfishness? Perhaps it's because they can't contain and understand emotions just like merpeople?  
"That's strange." Was all she could say.  
"Well… maybe that's something you can work on while I work on being friends. Sound good?" He said with a smile.

"Okay, I'm not sure how, but I'll try."  
And they shook on it.

* * *

A/N: If you're in the states, I wish you a Happy Thanksgiving! Otherwise, happy Thursday! *Sigh* another dull chapter, but this one was also paying homage to a certain movie that I also drew inspiration from for this fic so it's almost excusable. Think you know what it is? (The Ham is the big hint!) How about this, if you guess it right I'll give you a preview to the next chapter!

Anyway time for the important part! Thank you to:

TheRookieKing412 for favoring  
Ern Estine 13624 for reviewing (I'm glad you liked it!)  
mayuralover for reviewing (Oh there is a reason why Freya is acting this way. You'll find out soon! I'm very thrilled you are enjoying it!)  
readytostart for following, favoring, and reviewing! (Aww thank you! Yeah, I think this is the first time I ever got them just right. Well now it's my goal to not disappoint you! I'll do my best!)  
AnimeaMari for reviewing (Well to be fair, this is exactly what Freya warned Ahiru about right? Don't worry though, he'll shape up!)  
pajamas on my hearts for following (your pen name is adorable by the way!)  
HatchetChu for following

And most importantly, you for reading this far with me!


	5. A Secret Shared

It was the middle of the night, and Ahiru waited for everyone to be asleep before she tried her conch. Maybe it still worked, even if it's just one time. Maybe Ms. Edel can explain to her who banisher her from the seas.

Ahiru wobbled her way out of the house and got a little farther away until she ended up on the beach. Ahiru unclipped the conch from her necklace, cleared her throat, and begun to sing to it. The lights from the shell began to escape and surround her once again.  
"Ms. Edel?" She called out. She heard nothing. Her heart began to sink. Maybe she won't be able to find her answer.

"Ahiru? Ahiru, is that you?! Where are you?!"

That voice alone almost made Ahiru's heart burst out of her chest.  
"Yes! Ms. Edel, it's me! Something terrible has happened…"

* * *

After Ahiru finished her story to Ms. Edel, who listened to every last detail of what had become of her student, responded. "Ahiru, this doesn't make much sense. You're not on terms for banishment for singing the breath of life incantation, especially if you saved a life."  
"So then… why am I human?" Ahiru asked, begging that her mentor had an answer.

After a pause Edel responded, "There's only one other way for a mermaid to become a human… Ahiru tell me, do you know what color human blood is?"  
"No…"  
"It's red, unlike us who have blood by the color of our tails. Did you notice any near you?"

Ahiru thought about it for a moment. Her eyes suddenly grew wide with shock. "His lips were cut when I breathed into him…"  
"Then, you've fallen under an ancient spell Ahiru. Back when mermaids were known to humans, and fell in love, they would give up their tails by tasting human blood. It was long forgotten after merpeople and human connections were cut off. I don't know if there is a way to reverse what was done."

"There's nothing we can do?!" Ahiru wasn't sure if she could handle human life. It was already tough enough since she knew nothing already.  
"Well…" Edel began, "There is always the ancient power we rely on most…"  
"The moon?"  
"Correct. Perhaps I can find a spell that can reverse what happened to you with the moon's blessing. But it may take some time."

Ahiru bit her lip. What did that mean for her? Play human until it was time to go back home? She's already struggling with all this lying. What would these people say to her just vanishing all of the sudden? What if Freya exposed her if she staid too long?

"What should I do until then?" Ahiru asked, barely getting her words out.  
"I would normally advise against this, but… perhaps it would be best if you got help from humans. You may have to prove to them you are a mermaid though… as long as you can trust them."

Ahiru had to process all of this. Did Ms. Edel give her permission to tell the people taking care of her that she was a mermaid?! Freya's words echoed in her mind.  
"Are you sure about that Ms. Edel?"  
"Well… would you prefer to be on your own?"

No, she wouldn't... Perhaps it would be best to tell them the truth.  
"How would I prove to them… to the humans that I was a mermaid then?"  
Ms. Edel was silent for a moment. This wasn't an easy task since Ahiru was in an in between state of human and mermaid…  
"If you still have your abilities, have one of them help you so you can grant them a wish."

Ah, Ahiru had forgotten about that. Again, back when merpeople and humans could interact with one another many people sought out wishes from doing even the smallest of favors. People's abuse of this power was the splitting point for the merfolk. And now, here was Ahiru reawakening the sleeping beast that caused so many problems… and all because she wasn't careful when she saved a life!

"Okay, I'll try that."  
"Alright. I'll try and get in touch with you again if I get any closer to finding an answer. Be safe Ahiru."  
"Thank you Ms. Edel."

The lights began to clump back together and sink back into the conch. Ahiru was back in the darkness on the beach. She sighed as she clipped the shell back onto her necklace. Just how was she going to tell the others about all this? How could she find a way to grant at least one of them a wish? Before that question haunted her any more, she heard someone behind her.

"Ahiru? Is that you? I heard singing… and I thought I saw lights?"

Rue… Guess she wasn't far enough away from the house. Well, now was as good as any time to tell someone the truth!

"Rue? Yeah, I'm here." Ahiru said, trying to hold down her fear as she turned to face her. Rue began to walk up closer to her.  
"Was that… all of that, you?"  
Ahiru nodded. "But… how were you doing that?"

Ahiru swallowed, now or never.  
"Rue… I need to be completely honest with you. Even… if it sounds a little crazy. But first… were you the only one who helped me when you found me on the beach?"  
Rue was quite for a moment, "Yes, it was mostly me."  
"Okay… if you could have any wish granted, what would it be?"  
Rue looked confused, "What does this have to do with what just happened?"  
"Just… just answer the question and it'll all make sense."

"Um… okay." She took in a breath and answered, "I'd wish for this wedding planning to be done."

"Alright." Ahiru made a quick gesture and a book appeared in her hand. "There we go."  
She handed her the book. Rue took the book and began to read through it.  
"This is…"  
"All your wedding plans, right?"

"How did you do this?"

Ahiru took in a deep breath, "I… I actually didn't lose my memories. I just didn't tell you because… you wouldn't believe me if I told you the truth." This was it… "The truth is… I was… am… a… a mermaid…"

Rue didn't say anything. She opened her mouth, then closed it. She repeated this action several times before finally finding the words to say. "You're… you're serious?! A mermaid?"  
Worry crept into Ahiru's heart. "You don't believe me?"

"I… I mean…" Rue smiled a bit, mostly to herself, "Mom used to tell stories about mermaids to me and Fakir as kids. She would say all kinds of things, like pearls that cast spells, conches that would sing, wishes that mermaids could grant…" Rue's face dropped and looked back at Ahiru. But to be more specific, she eyed her necklace and the few pearls on it, "I had no idea… it could be true…"

Ahiru noticed her staring at her pearls. "Would you like to see one of my spells in action?" She could feel her courage returning. Rue silently nodded. Ahiru picked her invisibility pearl and concentrated hard. Rue suddenly went into shock! "What the?! You can turn invisible too?"

Ahiru deactivated her spell and turned a little red. "Yeah… I used this one a lot to… to watch you guys on the shore."  
Rue crossed her arms and smiled, "You used to watch us surf?" Ahriu only nodded.  
"I didn't know my brother and I had a fan base. Wait!" Ahiru stiffened at Rue's sudden change of voice, "If you were watching us… were you… did you… save Fakir? From the storm, I mean."

Ahiru swallowed. Freya didn't like it when she told her about that, but then again Freya was pretty bitter compared to Rue. How would she feel about that? Well, it's better than lying, right?

"I did. He was almost dead when I found him in the storm. It wasn't supposed to be that bad… the storm… it wasn't supposed to be. But…" Ahiru's heart began to feel heavy, "I messed up… my pearl given to the weather merpeople... shattered. The storm went out of control…"

Rue's mind was completely out of it. "Wait… you guys control weather?"  
"Not exactly… more like we keep weather tame, and sometimes we start them if we feel it necessary."  
"So… you guys created a storm, but lost control of it?"  
Ahiru nodded very guiltily. "Well still… you did save my brother. And that should be worth more than your mistake, right?"  
"I guess."  
"Okay… then don't let it hang over your head so much. And besides if you hadn't saved Fakir, he wouldn't still be here. And we would have never met!"

Rue kept her warm smile. It was enough to comfort Ahiru. "You're right."

"So… what happens now?" Rue asked, "Are you just here for a visit or…"  
"It was an accident actually…"

And Ahiru told Rue everything that had happened. Rue listened intently, trying to wrap her mind around everything Ahiru had gone through in the last 24 hours. (You read the last four chapters, you can probably guess what was going through Rue's mind at this point…)

"So… until your mentor Miss… Edel? Finds what you need, you're stuck here?"  
Ahiru nodded in response.  
"And who else knows you're a mermaid? Just me?"  
Ahiru shook her head, "Freya knows. I didn't tell her, she just… figured it out I guess."  
"How?"  
"Well there are a few humans who know about the existence of merfolk. I think your mother was one of them. But it's possible Freya is too."

Rue sat on this for a moment. Freya already got on her nerves as it was. She can only imagine how unpleasant Freya was to their mermaid guest. Who knows what Freya would do with that information!  
"Well then, she doesn't need to know that I know. Okay?"  
Ahiru nodded, it was good to know that Rue understood how much Freya made her uncomfortable.  
"Is there anyone else we should tell? Mytho… or Fakir…?"

"I'm not so sure… Freya sticks pretty close to Fakir…"  
"But Mytho sticks close to me." Rue offered, "It could be safe to tell him. And… if we can do it without a risk, we can tell Fakir. Sound good?"

Ahiru thought over this plan. There was no harm in telling Mytho, as far as she could tell. It was just Freya being so close to Fakir… Her stomach churned just thinking what would happen to her if she told Fakir with Freya preying on her already.

"I… I think so."  
"Okay then. Now, why don't we go inside and get some rest. We can talk more about this in the morning."

And with that Rue led Ahiru back to the house.

* * *

A/N: IMPORTANT NOTICE! I have finals next week, and a retreat the week after. So you may or may not get another chapter for a week or so. Sorry, if I had it my way I'd be writing all the time and have uploads galore for you all! But alas, 'tis how fate's cruelty runs.

In the meantime, I wish to bestow my thanks to:

Ern Estine 13624 for reviewing (Yeah, it's good he can be nice around her.)  
mayuralover for reviewing (And the plot thickens a bit more! Glad to know you're enjoying!)  
AnimeaMari for reviewing (*strokes imaginary beard* Hmmm… An interesting hypothesis to have.)  
Faintiana for favoring  
niyah606 for following, favoring, and reviewing! (I'm glad you're enjoying! I hope I can keep it up for you!)

And to you, for reading this far with me!


	6. Do You Believe Me?

Ahiru slept in that morning. Perhaps it was a small form of escape, but while she was asleep the other residents of the house were greeting each other for the morning.  
Rue was flipping through the book that had all the wedding plans Ahiru had made for her. Her brother walked in. He looked over her shoulder to see what she was flipping through. He arched his brow as he got a better look over it.

"What's that?" He asked, startling his sister.  
"Sorry," She said getting her nerves back in order, "I was looking over the wedding plans."  
"Wait… so you finished _all_ the wedding plans?"  
"Yup! Ahiru was up last night helping to make this happen."  
"Huh, that was nice of her… and a little unexpected…"  
 _Oh, you have no idea!_ Rue thought. "Yeah, she's really sweet. Probably why she's still asleep now."

Fakir walked over to the kitchen to start on his breakfast. "Ahiru seems pretty unpredictable. I wonder if she was like that before that memory loss."  
"There's no telling for right now. Maybe over time, we'll find out." Rue lied. It hurt a little to be dishonest with her brother, but it was Ahiru's secret to tell, and she had asked Rue to keep quiet for now until it was safe. Especially since Freya knew…

"Anyway… how are you and… uh… things?" She said trying to change the subject.  
"Eh… I'm fine. Looking into moving in with Freya-"

Rue closed the book quickly and turned to her brother. "You're what?"  
"Moving in with Freya." Fakir repeated, "I mean, once you and Mytho are married, I have to stay somewhere. Plus things are going well between us."

Rue tried to process everything her brother had just told her, "I-I-I mean, sure I guess that makes sense but… isn't it a little too soon to move in together. You haven't dated that long."

Fakir shrugged, completely unmoved by his sister's panic.  
Rue shook her head, "I think you're just overly attached to her since…" Rue stopped herself. She knew now wasn't the time to bring _that_ back up again.  
Fakir seemed confused, as if whatever his sister was talking about was over his head. He waited for her to finish her sentence. But she never would, at least, not right now.

"Um… never mind. We shouldn't be talking about this right now."  
"Huh, okay then."

As Fakir walked back to do who knows what, Ahiru finally woke up and entered the room. Rue thumbed the book, not noticing Ahiru was there.

"Something wrong?" Ahiru asked breaking Rue from her troubles.  
"I… uh… Ahiru? Can I ask you something?" Rue whispered.  
Ahiru cocked her head to the side, but quickly sat next to Rue to hear her better.  
"What kind of wishes can … can a mermaid… grant?"

Ahiru looked around to make sure no one was listening. "The wishes, for the most part, could be anything. So long as the mermaid is willing to make that happen. But… if there were any 'rules' it would probably the laws of life and nature really."

"Laws of life and nature?" Rue echoed.  
Ahiru nodded, "Can't create or destroy anything. I also can't bring anything back to life. Can't change the way nature already works… and I think we can't change basic physics."

Rue was quiet for a moment, "What about emotions? Can you do anything about that?"  
Ahiru shook her head, "Emotions are something I can't control. Especially being a silver tailed mermaid. I'll lose my emotions in several years. So why should I change the feelings of someone who has the gift of keeping them forever?"

Rue looked at Ahiru with sad eyes, "You won't be able to feel emotions by a certain age?"  
"Yeah… we've been searching for a way to prevent that but, until then I won't be able to."  
"I'm sorry." Rue tried to comfort her.  
"There's no need. I've known this since birth."

Rue mauled over everything Ahiru had said. This mermaid stuff was not only complex, it was pretty depressing.  
"What's wrong?" Ahiru asked.  
"Nothing you can fix. But I'll be okay."

"Um, alright… what are we going to do for today?" Ahiru said breaking the pause between the two.  
Rue looked around, "Do you think we could tell Mytho about you?" She whispered.

Ahiru bit her lip and nodded.  
Rue looked over her shoulder, "Hey Fakir! Can you house sit for a bit? I'm taking Ahiru with me to talk to Mytho about the wedding plans!"

* * *

Mytho gave a skeptic look as Ahiru began to explain herself. Let's be honest, if someone you barely knew came up to you and told you they were a mermaid, wouldn't you want a little proof?

"Ahiru…" He said gently, "Are you sure about this? This isn't coming from the storm knocking you out, right?"  
"Mytho!" Rue said pulling him aside, "I know it seems hard to believe, but it's true! She granted me a wish and showed me some of her abilities."  
"Forgive me for being a little hesitant to believe you." He responded, "But I wasn't raised on fairy tales. I'd appreciate some sort of proof."  
"Well what do you want me to do? Drop her in the water and hope she pops out a tail?"

"Why are you so keen on believing her?" Mytho asked gently.  
Rue took the opportunity to take out her newly acquired book and show it to him. "I wished to have all this wedding planning done. And Ahiru made this appear. When you help a mermaid, they return the favor by granting you a wish!"

Mytho looked over the book. He constantly flipped through pages, studying every detail. There was no way Rue could have done this so soon, especially on her own. He looked up at Ahiru, who smiled sheepishly. Rue was saying that _she_ did this?! This girl who was a mermaid?!  
"I… I mean… I get it, but… this is a really crazy claim you're asking me to believe. I'll do my best, even if I have little to go on." He said to his fiancé.  
"I can still prove it!" Ahiru said as she reached for her pearls, "As a mermaid, we capture spells into pearls and use that magic in times of need." She plucked one from her necklace, "This is the invisibility spell." After she took hold of her pearl and concentrated really hard. Mytho was suddenly thrown off the moment Ahiru vanished from her seat.

He uttered scattered sentances before finally settling on the phrase: "Okay… I believe you."  
Ahiru dissolved the spell and reappeared with a smile.

"Thank you Mytho. Now we can both work to help her." Rue said pecking her fiancé's check.  
"But what about Fakir? Shouldn't he know that… that she's a mermaid?" He asked trying to keep clear of what just happened.  
Rue only shook her head, "Ahiru doesn't want to tell him yet. She said Freya knew the moment they were alone."

Mytho looked at Rue in surprise. _Freya_ _knew!_ Is that why she doesn't like Ahiru? That changed a lot of this who situation. "How does Freya know?"  
Ahiru shifted uncomfortably in her seat the more they stayed on the topic for Freya.  
"Ahiru thinks she's one of the few humans who know of mermaid's existence. Seeing as she already knew so much about mermaids."  
Mytho finally took notice of Ahiru's discomfort. He whispered to Rue, "Is she's scared of Freya? I mean, she seems really nervous just mentioning her."

Rue looked over at Ahiru, "Freya's made it quite clear that she hates Ahiru. She may not like us, but I wouldn't want to deal with her when she hates you."

"Right… So what do we do now?"  
The two turned to Ahiru. She blinked a few times before answering.  
"We'd keep it quiet for now. Ms. Edel will tell me more of what to do. For now, help me blend in and find the chance to research more about what to do to reverse the spell."  
"You know," Rue began, "My mother had this old book on mermaids, if you want to look at that."

Ahiru felt her heart make a leap of hope, "Yes! Please!"  
Rue bit her lip, "That means I have to go visit my father then…"  
Ahiru tilted her head at Rue's change of tone.

Rue shook her head, "Let's just say we're not on good terms. But first thing tomorrow, I'll go get that book."  
"Do you want me to come with you?" Ahiru asked, but Rue put up her hand.  
"I'd rather spare you from the displeasure of meeting the man I'm forced to call father."  
"Ah… alright."

From there the three moved on to even more pleasant situation to look over the future wedding plans.

* * *

A/N: Huh, I guess I had a little bit of time to at least post this. Anyway, I'll make this quick: I would like to thank

pajamas on my hearts for reviewing (Sorry, that wasn't supposed to be author's notes. That was supposed to be the narrator talking to the reader. I like to imagine when reading/writing stories that someone is telling it to you. I guess I should have removed the parentheses. Again, sorry about that if it took you out of the story!)  
Ern Estine 13624 for reviewing (Yay, the truth shall set you free! Glad you liked it!)  
AnimeaMari (Um... maybe?)  
Wolf and Leopard for favoring  
mayuralover for reviewing (Thanks for the luck! I hope you enjoyed this chapter!)

And to you for reading this far with me!


	7. Coming Closer

Rue was gone before Ahiru was up that morning. Was Ahiru building a habit of sleeping in?  
Fakir on the other hand, being awake around the same time was pretty confused hearing the phrase: "I'm going to see dad today" escape from his sister's lips. Are we sure he was the one awake?

"I just need to get something from there." Rue said flatly.  
"What could you possibly want from that demented sadistic fossil?" He asked bitterly.  
Rue stopped in the doorway with her back to her brother.  
"I wanted to get one of mom's books." She said quietly. Fakir made no response. "Keep Ahiru company for me, okay?" Rue left the house before her brother could object.

Fakir sighed and tried to go about the rest of his day until Ahiru would wake up.

* * *

Ahiru finally stumbled out of her room around 10 am. Taking a quick scan around the house, she couldn't see anyone. Everything was really quiet… like, really _really_ quiet.  
The silence was quickly broken by the sound of a knock at the door. Before Ahiru could get a closer look at who was there, Fakir seemed to appear out of nowhere to answer the door. He cracked it open just enough to stick his head out. But before anything could be said, the door was forced open, causing Fakir to almost lose his balance.  
In came Freya.

The moment the two girls made eye contact, Ahiru's stomach was in knots.  
Freya's face momentarily curled to disgust, but quickly turned to a more polished welcome.  
"How are you feeling?" She said in a somewhat exaggerated tone.  
Ahiru took a deep breath, "I… I'm fine… Um… how are you?" She didn't even try to hide her discomfort.

Freya tossed her hair, "Great." She turned to Fakir, "I thought we could be alone for a bit." There was a different tone in her voice. She turned back to Ahiru with daggered eyes. Poor Ahiru was petrified.  
"No- um…" Ahiru began, "I'll just… I'll just go sit at the beach…"

Fakir only looked at Ahiru. "Fine by me, I don't care what you do."  
Man that was pretty rude.  
Ahiru sighed, "Right… because you asked." Ahiru started walking towards the door. "And since we're friends, I'll respect your wishes." And she walked out the door.

Fakir watched as Ahiru walked away. A pang of guilt hit him from those last words she gave. Why did he say that to her? He knew Rue had called him out before, and he made peace with Ahiru about that. So where did that come from?  
He turned back at Freya, than back to the door. Something felt very wrong about all this.  
"Well…" Freya began, "Can we talk or not?"

Fakir looked back at Freya and sighed. He was probably going to regret this.

* * *

Ahiru sat at the edge of the beach where the sand and water met. She watched the waves longingly, wishing desperately for that part of herself she lost not too long ago to return. To be able to ride with the waves, to breathe in the salt water, to chase after sea life, watching the humans from the distance. Ahiru plucked the invisibility pearl from her necklace and rolled it between her fingers. She didn't really need this around Fakir, he already saw right through her.

Ahiru caught herself in mid-thought.

Why did she suddenly care about how Fakir saw her? They were friends, absolutely! But… things felt different around him. A strange feeling she wasn't quite familiar with though…  
She clipped the pearl back onto her necklace. It shouldn't matter about this feeling. She would lose it eventually anyway. Plus it's not like she would stay here forever.

Getting lost deeper into her sad thoughts, Ahiru had not noticed someone joined her on the sands.  
"What'cha thinking about?"  
Ahiru went stiff. Was that…?

The moment Ahiru turned her head to her new companion, her heart almost jumped out of her chest.  
"I… uh… I was just…" She couldn't find the words to say.  
Fakir only gazed at her waiting for her to finish.  
"It… it was nothing…" she finally said.

Fakir sighed, "Well, Ahiru. I just wanted to say I'm sorry about earlier. I shouldn't have treated you like that."  
"It's fine." Ahiru said, trying to hold back the sadness she was recently drowning in.

Fakir leaned back and cocked his head to look at her, "Are you okay?"  
Ahiru looked away. This whole situation at the moment felt really weird. "Don't worry about it."

Fakir took one hand and placed it over Ahiru's shoulder to turn her back towards him. "Come on, you can tell me."  
Ahiru moved his hand away, "Why do you want to know so badly?"  
"Because last I checked, we were friends. And friends help each other out when something is bothering them."

Ahiru let a small sigh escape at that line. "I was… I was missing someone is all."  
Fakir nodded, "Can I ask who this 'someone' is?"  
"She's gone… And I just miss her."  
"Wait, is this someone you remember?" Fakir said, not shielding his excitement.

"No… She was gone after the storm…"

Fakir sat on that phrase for a moment. What did that mean? Fakir looked out to the waves to try and figure out what she was talking about. Let's see… someone she lost after the storm… oh wait!  
"Does this mean you remember something about yourself?"  
Ahiru looked at him carefully. She wanted to tell him the truth… but she felt some sort of presence that kept her from speaking.

"Something about the water. I don't know…" She said in a half-lie.  
"Well that definitely explains how we found you on the beach then."  
"Say Fakir…" Ahiru's voice seemed to shrink as she spoke to him, "what got you to like surfing so much?"

Fakir raised an eyebrow. That came out of nowhere. Did Rue tell her about all that? Probably, considering how much time the two spent together.  
"Um… I'm not too sure. Maybe the stories my mom used to tell about mermaids…" Fakir began to scratch the back of his head, "Let's see… the fact Rue and I grew up doing swimming contests." He looked back at her, "Sorry, I guess I'm not good at answering this question."

"No, its fine. I was just curious…" Ahiru said shifting a bit in the sand. "Don't suppose you have any interesting stories from surfing do you?"  
Fakir paused. Was there a good story he could tell her? He searched him memory for a moment he treasured that was good enough to tell… but only one came up. One that only had a pang of sorrow attached to it.  
"I remember one." He said in a hollow voice. "There was this competition my sister and I entered. And… there was this girl-"  
"Freya?" Ahiru interrupted.  
Fakir shook off his misery for a just a second, "What, no. She was… her name was Giselle. And… She was a good friend to us." Fakir sighed heavily, "She was my first love…" his voice was practically a whisper. "We had been together for years, but she… she drowned almost a year ago." A nostalgic sorrow enveloped Fakir's heart. Ahiru could have sworn she saw him on the verge of crying.  
Fakir ran a hand through his hair, "I haven't thought about her in months…" His voice was breaking.

Fakir was so lost in his depression that he hadn't noticed Ahiru threw her arms around his head.  
"I'm really sorry to hear that… I shouldn't have asked."  
Fakir tensed at Ahiru's touch for a moment, but quickly relaxed. Something about her holding him at this moment made him feel safe. "No, it's fine. I really needed to talk about her… maybe that's why I've been acting like a royal pain lately. Maybe… I'm not over her at all…"  
"I know how you feel." She said stroking some of his hair, "Maybe when you're ready, you can tell me more about her?"

Fakir reached for Ahiru's arms and held on.  
"Yeah…" He whispered, "I'd like that."

At the moment, Ahiru was willing to let the paranoid feeling she had before settle down. If she had paid more attention, she probably would have noticed the slim blond figure in the distance with glaring green eyes watching the whole scene with great malice.

* * *

A/N: Sorry about that! But I am back with a belated Christmas treat for you all! Let me know what your thoughts were about this chapter!

I want to Thank:

Ern Estine 13624 for reviewing (Sorry you had to wait so long! But I hope you liked this one!)  
AnimeaMari for reviewing (Not this chapter but the next. So sit tight!)  
mayuralover for reviewing (Fakir is on the road to finally getting his head on straight! And yes, next chapter we meet the terrible father!)  
AdeliaAira for favoring and following  
RainbowSaga for following  
Princess Hephzi of Arendale for reviewing and following (Merry Christmas to you too! I'm really thrilled you like the story so far!)

And of course you, for reading this far with me!


	8. Family Reunion

Rue walked up to the house she once grew up in. She sighed as she took hold of the door knob. She gave it a small twist.  
Locked.

Rue groaned, as she began to fish for her old house key in her pockets. She was hoping to be quick and quiet about all this. She didn't want another reunion with daddy-dearest. Right as she found her key, the door knob rattled. Oh no…

The knob turned, but the door seemed to be jammed. There was a violent tug at the door before it finally sprung open. There in the door way, in a red robe, was Rue's father. His eyes met hers. No greetings were exchanged. Rue simply glared at the white haired man and said, "I need something of mom's. Let's just make this quick."

She had no patience to spare at that moment. He wasn't moving from his spot.  
"If I had known my disobedient daughter was going to show up, I would have prepared a warm welcome." He responded. Rue couldn't tell if he was being sincere or sarcastic. But that didn't matter to her. Can she just get what she needs and get out?!  
"Well, she's here now. And she needs something of her mother's." Rue voice was dripping with aggravation.  
"Yes I heard that part. It's upsetting that our reunions have boiled down to this isn't?"

What was he doing? Trying to make small talk or something?!  
"Well maybe it wouldn't be so bad if you would actually accept that I have to live my own life instead of living under your thumb. Now if you excuse me!" She tried to move past him, but he didn't budge.  
"What do you need so badly of your mom's?" He asked, still refusing access to his child.

"I need her mermaid book." She said flatly.

His eyebrow arched. "Why?"  
"Why do you care?" Rue snapped.  
"I would like to know why my oldest child wants to shuffle through my late beloved's things for a dusty old book."

"You wouldn't understand."

The old man paused for a moment. Then a smile slowly crept across his face.  
"You made a new _friend_?" He said in a voice that was kind of creepy.  
"That's none of your concern."

"Is it?" He asked, "Are you scared to tell me about you finding a mermaid?"  
Rue's heart pounded hard in that one instant, but she maintained her cool composure.  
"Mermaids don't exist."  
"Sure they do. Why else would you want that old encyclopedia about discrete half-human-half-fish beings?"  
Rue didn't respond.  
"You can't lie to me Rue." He said, "Especially since your mother and I both knew of their existence before you were even born."  
Rue flinched, "What?"  
"It was her wish that we tell you about them… but I had no idea it was because she thought you would meet one, one day."  
Rue's agitation grew, "Fine! Yes, we found a mermaid. Now can I just take the book and never deal with you again?!"  
Her father put up his hands, "Calm down Rue. Maybe I can help you too-"

"No. I don't want you anywhere near her!"

A sad look appeared on her father's face. "I know we don't get along-"  
"GET ALONG! No, try 'I know I don't like when you act on your own'!"  
"But… if it's for your benefit, I'll do what I can to change."

"Is that the same crap you used on mom when she threatened to leave?" Rue snarled.  
Her father said nothing.  
"If you won't say anything, the least you can do is let me get what I came for." Rue was trying so hard not push her father out the way after all this. Instead, her father complied and stepped out of the way. Rue stormed in and rushed to her mother's old library. She began scanning the spines for the right one. Meanwhile, her father leaned on the door frame to the small library.  
"You act a lot like her, you know." He said calmly.  
"Good." Rue responded sharply, "Rather be like her than you."

He sighed, "Then you would probably know she wouldn't want us acting like this."  
Rue stopped what she was doing, keeping her back to him.  
"She had the virtue of forgiveness. Something I didn't get from her. Mom may have believed in a better you, but I don't."

Rue went back to scanning until she found what she was looking for. She slid the encyclopedia off the shelf and began dusting it off. She stood up and walked out without looking at her father.  
He followed her out saying, "Ungrateful children like you crash and burn really easily."  
"So what, you think an empty threat like that will want me to come crawling back to you?" Rue retaliated, still not looking at him.

He said nothing.  
"It wasn't a pleasure to see you… Drosselmeyer." Rue said sourly as she left.  
Her father sighed. He hated it when she said his first name like that.

As he watched his daughter walk away, Drosselmeyer's curiosity began nagging at him. He quickly rushed back into his house and began to rummage through his wife's old jewelry box until he pulled out an old necklace with a dimming blue orb dangling from it. Next he rushed to grab a crystal bowl he had hidden away and filled it with water from their waterfall in the back yard.

He placed the bowl on a flat surface and looked down on the water. He began swinging the necklace to and fro over the water, mumbling a chant under his breath. The orb began to glow more brightly as Drosselmeyer lowered it to the water. Once the orb made ripples in the water, the glow moved to the water itself.

"Show me the mermaid who knows my daughter." He commanded.  
The spelled water obeyed. But it seemed to struggle with focusing on the mermaid. But at the moment, he could see she was with his son.  
There was no telling if this was right now, or a flashback, or even the future for that matter.  
So it seems she's close to his son too.

This makes things more complicated…

* * *

The rest of the day for Ahiru didn't really go anywhere.  
Well besides that talk with Fakir.

But when Rue got back, they began looking over the book to see if it said anything, but they barely scratched the surface before it was getting close to the end of the day. So it was time to call a quits all for the sake of sleep. Plus Rue had to get to work the next day.

Right as Ahiru headed back to her room, her conch began to sing. Panicking at the sudden call, Ahiru slammed the door shut and pulled the conch off her necklace. She was once again enveloped by the lights and the very voice she was hoping to hear spoke.

"Ahiru… Are you there?"  
"Ms. Edel!" Ahiru shouted before realizing people were trying to sleep.  
"Ahiru, I have good news. I found out how to bring you back home."  
"Re-really?" Ahiru couldn't believe it took Ms. Edel such a short time to do it. But she was too excited to even question it.

"Yes, I'll tell you how. But promise no one follows you. Understand?"  
"I…" Ahiru poked her head out the door before answering.  
"Ahiru, don't you want to come back home?"

Ahiru sighed.  
"Yes, I do. Okay, I promise to go alone."

* * *

A/N: Few, back from forced family vacation. At some point though I'm going to need a break to regroup the plot of this story since I don't know what to do next at the moment… But we'll deal with that when the time comes.

I would like to thank:

Ern Estine 13624 for reviewing (Freya was pretty mad, huh? Glad you liked it!)  
AnimeaMari for reviewing (I guess Freya just isn't ready…. I'm really sorry I just referenced that. I'm really tired… I'm really happy to know you're enjoying so far!)  
NPanda for following and favoring  
mayuralover for reviewing (Oh, there's more to it than just that. But it is the beginning of what has become of Fakir!)  
Muffy3001 for following and favoring  
Kiseki (me happy that you likey! I hope you've enjoyed this chapter as well!)

And most importantly to you for reading this far with me!  
HAPPY NEW YEAR!


	9. The Maiden's Final Tune

Ahiru looked out over the beach as the crescent moon shined over the waves. There was a nauseating feeling in her stomach… Fear? Excitement? Sorrow? Who knew? It didn't really matter, all that mattered was that she was going home. She tried to scribble a good bye letter to Rue in mer-runes seeing as she didn't know how to write in English. Rue could use the book to translate it…

She headed out the door and walked along the more rugged areas near the beach searching for what Ms. Edel had told her to find. Let's see, what were they called again? Apatite rocks? But specifically the ones that glowed in the dark?

Ahiru continued searching as her night gown blew gently in the evening breeze. Some of the rocks around the rough cliffs began to cut her bare feet and hurt with every step she took; but it didn't bother Ahiru too much if it meant she'd be home soon! She made a quick examination of the gashes on her feet. Interestingly enough, her blood was still silver and the cuts weren't too deep. She sighed as she carried on.

She turned over every stone until she found enough glowing apatite rocks. Once she had enough, she headed over to the highest part of the cliffs that looked out over the shore. She looked up to the moon, feeling its small trickle of power coming from it. Funny that Ms. Edel didn't tell her to wait until a full moon where she could be at her strongest. Maybe she was just as eager to get her home as Ahiru was?

Whatever the reason, Ahiru could ask later. Now she just had to sing the long incantation before she could do anything else.

* * *

Drosselmeyer watched his daughter's house for a long while as if expecting it to relinquish the merperson within its dwelling. He had to know what was going on, even if his daughter refused to let him come near!

To his surprise, the very person he sought appeared from the back door. She had a determined look on her face as she headed towards the cliffs. Oh God, was she going to…?

Drosselmeyer had no time to loose! He kept a fair amount of distance from her as he followed her up the rocky turf. He could hear a few "ow"s and "ah"s from her. Serves her right for not wearing shoes! Drosselmeyer thought rather snarky. But his thoughts changed when he began to notice trails of silver blood on the ground.

He looked back up at the stranger as she looked over her feet. What was she doing? Or perhaps a better question would be, what did she _think_ she was doing?

The red head kept on going, looking for… something along the rocks. That was when he noticed the first rock she picked up. His eyes expanded. She does realize what those rocks will do to her if she's not careful, right? To better assure himself, Drosselmeyer continued to follow silently behind.

The girl stopped at the highest cliff edge and took a deep breath. Drosselmeyer swallowed as this song escaped the mermaid's lips:

 **Silver moon, Hear my prayer  
Have pity for a plain maiden's dare **

**I bask in your light most pure  
to send your energy for my cure **

**I bleed and suffer more  
unless you hear me from the sea floor **

**Return me here and back again  
leave me not forsaken **

The tune was so sorrowful to Drosselmeyer's ears. Had this mermaid suffered so much? And he thought his bratty kids at least knew better! He curled his fist but continued to listen.

Ahiru shuffled the rocks in her hands a bit before continuing:

 **These stones that rest with no return  
Receive power without stern**

 **If it be from your grace  
let these rocks and your light embrace **

**I want to breathe last once more  
torn away from the world **

**And return me home  
to thy sliver throne **

Ahiru closed her hands around the rocks and extended her hands forward. Drosselmeyer, still torn by the girl's sorrow, watched anxiously as she prepared for the final verse:

 **Thus surrendering these rocks  
I wish to be freed from the spell's locks **

**Thus breathe last  
until I awaken in my home's grasp **

Ahiru's hands began to shake and glow from the concealed rocks in her fists. Finally she released them and let the fall to the ground. The glowing got stronger from the moonlight. And right before Ahiru could react, the stones released a smoke that slowly rose to fill Ahiru's lungs. She coughed and weeazed practically shouting, "Wha- What is this?!"

Drosselmeyer, now realizing what was going on leaped into action. He didn't have to worry about holding his breath since the smoke wouldn't affect him. He went up to the girl, threw his hand over her mouth, and while kicking the rocks over the edge, he pulled her away to safety as she passed out.

"What the hell?! What possessed this girl to do this?" He muttered to himself. Realizing he has an unconscious injured humanized mermaid in his arms, he had to act quickly.

* * *

Morning arrived in Rue's home, and being in a hurry for work, she missed the lonely note sitting on the counter. Fakir, who worked a little later in the day picked up on it quickly after his sister left.

Of course, he was immensely confused as to what he was reading. Most people don't know how to understand mer-runes, especially when they see them for the first time. Although Fakir had no idea on the instance, he did have a foggy memory to it. What was it?

Then it clicked!  
He rushed to the old mermaid book and went to translating.

He solved it pretty quickly, upon which the message read:

 _Dear Rue,_

 _I'm sorry to leave you so suddenly, but I'm afraid I can't tell you why.  
I hope you can forgive me, but I've finally gone home!  
Perhaps I'll see you and Fakir while you're surfing from the ocean again! _

_I'm going to miss you,  
Ahiru_

Fakir sat and pondered this. What was Ahiru talking about? Didn't she forget everything after that storm? And what about that thing with watching them surfing from the ocean? Or an even bigger question, why was this note written in some "merfolk" language?

He ran over to where Ahiru was sleeping only to find her room empty. He scratched his head and looked out the window. "Ahiru, where did you go?"

Being quick of his feet, Fakir rushed outside to the beach to look for clues. At first, it didn't seem like much could be done. Until he checked the rocker path, where he noticed a small set of foot prints… Could it be Ahiru's? He watched as the tracks disappeared to the long and rocky path up the cliff side. He noticed another set of foot prints, much larger than the one he was following. That can't be good….

Fakir began to trudge up the path in the general direction to try and notice anything. Along the path he found some sort of dried silver puddle of… something in the small foot prints. It reminded Fakir of blood, but that couldn't be it. He climbed farther until he got to where the trail stopped, which just so happened to be where the "blood" pooled the most. He glanced over the edge and noticed a few rocks at the bottom that seemed a little out of the ordinary. He wasn't sure if the rocks were glowing, or burned out.

What the heck was going on here?!

Whatever happened, he needed to address Rue about this tonight!

* * *

A/N: I feel like the subtitle of this chapter should be: "I'm too white to be a rapper" because those rhymes were pretty lame…

Anyway, I've been trying to crank out more chapters, but I've hit a wall… I will however, do my best to get past it.  
In the meantime, I would like to thank:  
RainbowSaga for reviewing (I'm glad you did! I had fun writing that one.)  
AnimeaMari for reviewing (Yeah, sorry about that. I considered it. But it seemed to make sense to me to have Drossel as her papa. I might still incorporate the raven though…)  
Ern Estine 13624 for reviewing (Not quite what you were expecting. There's still a lot to discover!)

And you for reading this far with me!


	10. Recover and Regroup

Rue came home feeling completely swamped. Work sucked, but it was either work or live with dear old papa… the choice was pretty clear. Of course her mind was where it usually was after work that she didn't notice her brother waiting for her playing with a piece of paper in his hand.  
After she plopped onto the couch, Fakir cleared his throat.

Rue snapped her head towards him. "Hey bro, something wrong?"  
Fakir was taking another look at the note as he walked up to her. "Is there something about Ahiru that you aren't telling me about?"  
In Rue's mind, everything came to a halt. Did he find out? Was Freya onto them? Rue swallowed before speaking. "What do you mean?"

Fakir shoved the note in his sister's face. Rue stared at the strange symbols, then noticed Fakir's translation at the bottom. Rue stuttered for a moment. Quickly realizing that her brother needed an answer, she got a hold of herself and turned to her brother. "Fakir, do you remember those stories our mom used to tell us?"  
Fakir only pulled the book from behind him, "You mean the ones from here, which I used to translate that note?"  
"There's a reason for that."

Fakir pondered his sister's remark.  
"No… you can't be serious…" He said flatly, "You think she's a mermaid?!"  
"She is!" Rue protested, "How else could she have known how to write like that? Why else does she act so differently? How else- wait a second." Rue ran off and came back to grab her wedding plans book, "How else could she able to do this is one night?"

Fakir shook his head. This was just ridiculous! He took another glance at their mother's story book. He sighed and flipped through a few pages. No way could any of this be tru- wait, what was that?  
There sketched onto one of the pages, was a necklace that made a striking resemblance to Ahiru's…  
Fakir gaped at the picture. You can't be serious…

He looked back at his sister with a mix of confusion and wonder. "This is… Ahiru's necklace?"  
Rue peered over the page and nodded. Fakir looked back at the page, "Why didn't you tell me anything?" It was unclear who Fakir was saying this to whether it be himself, his sister, or that faded memory of Ahiru that was forever trapped in him mind. But it seemed like only his sister could answer.  
"Ahiru was scared what would happen if she told you…" Rue bit her lip, "Because somehow, Freya knew and threatened her."  
Fakir's head shot up quickly at hearing that last part, "She knew?! And she did what?!"  
Rue silently nodded, "We're not entirely sure how she knew, but she does. And for some reason she has it out for Ahiru…" Rue tried to be gentle with that last part. She knew how mesmerized he was by Freya, and tearing her down like this wouldn't be easy for him to accept.  
Fakir ran a hand through his hair, "This… this is insane…"  
Rue patted her brother's shoulder, "I know how you feel. But one part I don't seem to understand is why she couldn't say how she left."

Fakir snapped out of his trance, "I don't know if this will help, but I found something strange, if you want to take a look."

* * *

After meeting up with Mytho, the trio climbed up the rocky path where Fakir pointed out his findings. Of course this was after Fakir had another freak out as to why Mytho knew and he didn't until now!  
Mytho knelt down next to the dried sliver fluids. "Is this… blood?"  
"That's what I thought," Fakir noted, "but what blood is silver?"

"Actually…" Rue interrupted, "I think mom's book said something about a mermaid's blood being the same color as her tail."  
Fakir and Mytho looked back at the stain, "So… is Ahiru's tail silver?" Mytho asked.  
"I think Ahiru mentioned that." Rue answered.

"Great," Fakir said sourly, "So we know she was here last night and she was probably attacked by whoever's foot prints those are!" In case you couldn't tell, Fakir was pretty upset. Why did he always have to find out about anything when things got difficult?! How much more useless could he be in this situation?

"Fakir," Mytho began, "calm down. We'll figure this out. Let's look at what we know so far." Fakir sighed as they listed off what could be said.  
"Ahiru left us last night, possibly because she turned back into a mermaid…" Man saying that out loud made it all the more real and yet… bizarre. "There's her blood along the tracks, and there's another set of foot prints that followed hers."

"So whose foot prints are the other set?" Mytho began, "It'd have to be a grown man judging by the foot size."  
"What grown man would follow a petite girl up a rocky cliff?" Rue asked flatly.  
Fakir shrugged his shoulders, "A stalker, maybe something worse like a-"  
Rue quickly threw her hand up, "I don't even _want_ to think of who could have followed her if we go down that direction!"  
"Okay, okay. Why don't we head back to the house and check the book to see if there are any other answers we can find." Mytho said.

* * *

Drosselmeyer looked over the unconscious mermaid laying on his daughter's bed. He wondered to no end what could have possessed this young girl to take her own life like that. He knew his kids were terrible, but were they _that bad_?! It was all garbled mess to him. And the only one to possibly make any sense of it, was the one still trying to keep a hold on living.

Drosselmeyer looked at his watch, it was probably time to give her more medicine. He got up to where his late wife kept her merfolk possessions. The ingredients for the counter spell had to be here somewhere. After taking a few minutes of scouring the shelves he found the next dose to give the mermaid. He found a clean needle and dispenser and filled it with the medicine. He came back to the girl, still hadn't moved at all. But the rise and fall of her chest was enough to know she was still alive. He carefully injected her arm with the medicine into her blood stream.

Once the fluid was completely given, Drosselmeyer carefully plucked the needle out of her arm. At that moment the girl let out a small yelp and jolted up. Drosselmeyer turned his head to see her face. She was wake, and she looked petrified upon seeing him.

"Ah," He said, "Good you see you're finally awake." The girl still said nothing. Drosselmeyer continued, "You have nothing to fear, my friend. I know what you really are."  
"Wh-what are you talking about?" She finally said in a small voice.

"It's obvious to one who still whispers the secrets of your kind." He said calmly. The phrase rang familiar in Ahiru's ears. That's what Freya told her… so he's…?  
"A human who knows mermaids still exist?" She mumbled. Drosselmeyer nodded. He went back to treating Ahiru's arm really quickly. "So tell me," He asked without looking at her, "Why did you try to kill yourself back there?"

Ahiru stared at the man in confusion. "What do you mean kill myself? My mentor told me to do that. She said it would bring me back home."  
"It'll bring you home alright." The old man muttered darkly, "If you had inhaled more of that gas you would have gone to your _eternal_ home. An old trick for some who wanted suicide the quick and painless way." Ahiru looked at him with horror. Was he suggesting that her mentor was trying to kill her? Her own family?! Drosselmeyer noticed the mermaid's fear surging within her, "I won't call your mentor out on anything. But you might want to be suspicious of who you talk to on your conch."  
"But she's the only one I've talked to!" Ahiru tried to defend Ms. Edel. Drosselmeyer nodded, "Then it must have been your mentor who was talking to someone she shouldn't."  
Ahiru looked at the man as even more fear raged up within her, "Then I have to help her! I have to-" she tried to get up but instantly felt lightheaded. Drosselmeyer helped settle her back down. "You can't do anything in your condition. Even if you were in full health, you can't go down there to help her. Remember your gills are gone."

Ahiru sunk back down. That last line was heavy on her mind. Her gills were gone, her tail was gone, her home was gone, Ms. Edel was probably in danger, and it all happened because of a choice she made. Drosselmeyer sighed, seeing the girl being entranced by her woes. But, what could be done? He had a room loaded with her kind's magic, but nothing in there could give the girl what she wished for.  
Drosselmeyer began to look internally, was he… feeling pity for a mermaid? And for that matter, why was he so keen on helping her to begin with?

He made a quick glance to a picture hanging on his daughter's wall. The woman who made his heart melt, who took him back with all his problems and continued to cope with his mess until the day she died, looked down on him with that beautiful smile in the frame. It was hard to be better for her when their kids wanted nothing to do with him. But perhaps, that's why he was doing this now. To be better for her, since it's too late to be better with his children. He looked back at the girl who was still lost in thought.

"Hey," He said gently, "I know I won't be of much help, but perhaps there can be a way to know if your mentor is in danger." Hope began to glimmer in Ahiru's eyes. "Wait here." He said as he got up and left the room. He came back with a glass bowl filled with water and a glowing necklace. Ahiru watched as the man preformed the ancient ritual and watched as the water changed colors from the necklace. The man looked to her and said, "Now ask about your mentor."

Ahiru took in a deep breath and asked, "Tell me true, is Ms. Edel in any danger?"

The water began to shift within its bowl to reveal Ms. Edel in prefect health desperately searching for answers of some kind. "Strange," The man said, "She appears to have had no conflict lately. I don't even think she's touched her conch."  
"But I heard Ms. Edel's voice when I called to her." Ahiru said. Drosselmeyer pondered this for a moment. "Then the question is, who did you talk to who sounded like Edel? If I still had that mermaid book, we might be able to find a clue or something."  
"Mermaid book? You have one too?!" Ahiru sounded pretty excited at that word.  
Drosselmeyer frowned. Right, she still doesn't know who he is. Well… better late than never.  
"Actually, my daughter took it from me." He said, "She's your friend you've been staying with."

Ahiru was quite as she let that last line sink in. Did he say… he was…?  
"You're… Rue's _father_?" He nodded silently in response. "But… Rue said you were a bad person. A displeasure to meet… but… you've been nice to me." The confusion in her voice was impossible to miss.

"Well, she has reasons to hate me. I was a bad father. I can't change that, but I can learn from it." His gaze turned back to the picture of his wife, "Being alone, defiantly makes one see how wrong you are. My wife was a saint for all she did. I never should have been the way I was. But seems all I can do now is blubber for my kids' forgiveness and help a mermaid they told me to stay away from."

Ahiru watched the man for a moment. She reached out and touched his hand. "Um… Rue's father…"  
"You can just call me Mr. Drosselmeyer." He said.  
"Mr. Drosselmeyer, I know I may not be able to do much, but you did help me. As a mermaid I owe you a wish." Drosselmeyer was quiet while Ahiru continued, "I know I can't bring back your wife, and I can't change your children's hearts, but… maybe I can still offer you something with this wish…"

The old man pondered this for a moment. "I'll have to think about that one. But thank you miss…?"  
"Ahiru, sir. My name is Ahiru."  
"Thank you, Ahiru."

* * *

A/N: My apologies for taking so long to update (scheduling issues and trying to write what comes next). I hope you can forgive me for taking so long! This chapter was kind of an odd one for me, but what do you think?

Thank you to:  
Muffy3001 for following and reviewing (I really appreciate that! Thank you!)  
AnimeaMari for reviewing (Yes I did. Maybe I'm just being hard on myself if you think it's that good. Thank you for the positive feedback!)  
Ern Estine 13624 for reviewing (I hope so too. Drosselmeyer's not all bad, but that doesn't mean he's all good either!)  
taco tree for following  
mayuralover for reviewing (Drossel's pretty sketchy I'll say that much. Don't be fooled by this chapter, he's not perfect!)  
And you for having enough patience to read this far with me!


	11. An Act of Desparation

Although Fakir was still doing his mindless job, he was nowhere internally stable. Since he had to leave for work, his sister and her fiancé were left in charge of searching for any more clues or explanations for what happened to Ahiru the night before. But that wasn't the only thing that left a buzz in his mind. Freya, _his_ girlfriend had practically lied to him about what she knew about Ahiru. What was even going on here?! Even more nonsensical was the fact that Ahiru herself was a mermaid, a FREAKING mermaid! Does that even remotely make sense?!

Fakir's wrestle with his thoughts must have become pretty obvious seeing as one of his co-workers confronted him about it by the end of their work day.  
"So… care to explain what's wrong?" Autor asked.  
Fakir sighed, "A lot of problems at home." Autor raised an eyebrow, "Did your dad demand you to come home again?"  
Fakir looked back at Autor, "What? No. I haven't contacted that monster in years."  
"Sister issues?"  
Fakir frowned. Autor wasn't going to let up on this was he? "Something like that."  
"She kicking you out of the house?"  
"No…. a friend of ours went missing."

Autor looked surprised, but intrigued. What was with this guy and being so nosey? "Did you call the police?"  
"It's a little more complicated than that." Fakir muttered. "We found her washed up on the beach after that really bad storm a couple of days ago. She didn't remember much of her life. And now all of a sudden, she vanishes in the middle of the night."

Autor pondered this for a moment. "You think she had some kind of abusive family that found out where she was and kidnapped her back?"  
Fakir stared at Autor after hearing this theory. "She didn't have any signs of physical abuse though. Besides, she left a note saying she left, but didn't say why or how."

That's… really weird. What kind of person who suffers from amnesia not tell these people where she went? "Can I see the note?" Autor asked.  
"Why? When did you become mister detective?" Fakir responded defensively. Autor arched his brow. What's wrong if he sees it? Is Fakir hiding something? Autor back off for now. But he'd find out sooner or later. While Fakir was turned away, Autor made a quick scan of the dark haired boy's bag. Then he stumbled upon the paper he was looking for.

A paper note written in Fakir's hand writing about some girl named Ahiru. That's odd, why would Fakir write out the note this 'Ahiru' girl wro-  
Autor felt paralyzed upon seeing the symbols etched onto the other side of the paper. He'd only seen that… Autor looked sharply back at Fakir who still hadn't noticed Autor's snooping. He shoved the note back where he found it, packed up his things quickly and rushed out. This can't be happening again!

* * *

Fakir made it back to Rue's place with his anxiety eating him alive. He practically slammed the door open to find Rue and Mytho still hunched over the book. He swallowed his fear, and spoke up. "Did you find anything?!"

Rue picked her head up and stared at her brother with dread in her eyes. Without a word, she shook her head. Fakir's heart stopped in defeat. Their trail back to Ahiru had gone cold. Rue glanced over to the clock, "Don't you usually come home before this late?" She asked. Fakir snapped back into his senses, "Oh… no, Autor kept me late. He was being nosy again."

Rue shot a worried look at Fakir, "Did you…?!" She didn't want to finish. Fakir rolled his eyes, "Yes sis, I told him everything about how we found and lost a mermaid." He said dryly. Fakir went back in his mind of that conversation. That was when a disturbing thought crossed his mind.  
"Rue… did Dad know you took that book from his place?" Mytho was the one to respond this time, "Well, he'd have to know since you took it from his place, right?" Rue only bit her lip, "Well… usually we can just get in and get out without father knowing. But this time…"

Mytho shot his fiancé a shocked look, "You didn't!" Rue gave an uncomfortable grin, "um… he kind of cornered me…"  
Fakir quickly picked up on this, "But did he demand anything of you?" "I… uh… kind of…" She answered. "What do you mean, 'kind of'?"  
"He wanted to know if we found a mermaid." A pause, "I told him we did…" Both the men in the room glared at her, "Hey, give me a break! I only told him we found one and that was it!"

Fakir kept his sinister stare on his sister, "Anything else you left out?!"  
Rue looked down, "He and mom were one of the few humans that knew mermaids existed, that's why mom told us mermaid stories…"

"You have got to be freaking kidding me! First of all, you get on _my case_ about telling people about Ahiru, when you already told that psychotic man about her?! Second, because of your screw up, I think I might know what happened to Ahiru."

Rue and Mytho jumped out of their seats so quickly, the chairs fell to the ground with a clatter. They listened and waited for Fakir's answer. "If he knows about mermaids, then I'm willing to bet he knows what happened to her." The couple turned towards each other and chewed on this idea for a moment. If Drosselmeyer knew about mermaids, there could be all sorts of tricks to make things look like something else entirely. And if he did do it that would explain the larger foot prints they saw. Fakir's acusation was actually pretty reasonable.

Mytho looked back at Fakir, "How'd you come up with that theory?" Fakir shrugged, "Autor suggested that time when our dad tried to force me to come live with him. He also suggested a family kidnapping. It seemed a little farfetched at first, but after hearing of _someone's_ blunder," his eyes were on his sister at that moment, "It actually started to sound quite possible."

Rue nodded in agreement, "I think that is our best place to start. We should confront him tomorrow about this then."

Just then, as all was looking a bit on the brighter side, a knock was heard at the door. The air got tense among the three. Who would come at the hour? Any other strange magical creatures they should be wary of? Everyone was frozen, unsure of what to do. Finally seeing as the door would not respond, the unidentified guest swung it open. The commanding presence of Freya overwhelmed everyone. One with worry, one with annoyance, and one with just utter betrayal.

Fakir glared at her, "What are _you_ doing here?" That question burned with anger. Freya looked at him with a confused look. "I… I just wanted to see you. I haven't heard from you in a while." She sounded so innocent and frightened. Fakir felt uneasy hearing those words. He looked back at Rue and Mytho, who seemed just as dazed as he was after hearing that line. He put his attention back on Freya. He took hold of her arm and looked her dead in the eyes, "We need to talk." He said trying to maintain his anger. Freya blinked a few times, "Okay…" She said in a small voice.

Fakir dragged her to another room and shut the door.

Fakir sighed and turned his gaze to the blond girl. "What do you know about Ahiru?"  
Freya stared at him, "What are you talking about?"  
He grabbed her arm once more and began to squeeze it, "Don't play dumb with me! What do you know?!"

Freya's face turned to an icy glare, "What makes you think I know anything about her?"  
Fakir held his stare, "I know she's a mermaid, and somehow you knew that too." He crushed her arm tighter, "Tell me!"

Freya now realizing that she was stuck with no other alternative left spoke up, "She thought she was banished from the seas for saving you from drowning. But that's not why she's human now." Freya's face twisted to disgust, "It's because she tasted your blood." Fakir reeled back a moment, "How did she…?"

"The breath of life incantation." Freya answered, "You could say it's like a mermaid Heimlich maneuver. In order to save you from dying, she has to breathe some of her life into you. There was a cut on your lip when we found you. I figured that's how she turned human."

Fakir briefly touched his lips as the thought of Ahiru's on his sunk in for a moment. Not only that, but that part of her life was now his… A strange longing to be in that moment began to invade his thoughts momentarily before snapping back to reality. He looked back at Freya. Keeping his hold on her, he asked, "What else haven't you told me?" Most of the sting in his voice was gone, but it still was uncomfortable.

Freya turned away, "Don't make me say it…" Fakir's grip got tighter, so much so that Freya cried out. "Do you know where she went?!"  
"No! Let go of me!" She cried.  
"Then what aren't you telling me?!"

That sick feeling Freya had been all too familiar with made a reprise in this moment. To think it had come to this. Freya took in a few deep breathes before turning back to Fakir.  
"I'm sorry…" She whispered. Taking one last long look in his eyes, Freya took in a deep breath.

* * *

Freya walked backed to the door way with Mytho and Rue watching her. Freya's head turned sharply towards Mytho and in a sweet voice she said, "Why don't you check on Fakir. I'd like to speak to Rue alone." Without a word, Mytho got up quickly to see what had happened to Fakir. That left a stare off between the two women.

Rue got to the point. "What did you do?!"  
"An act of desperation. You're brother started to act just like the others I've dealt with. I did it for my own safety. He'll be fine by tomorrow."

And with that last word, Freya flicked her attention back to the door and boldly walked.

* * *

A/N: I am very sorry for missing the last week. I've been in school mode and the creative fountain is running dry because of it. I'm doing my best to keep up, I'm almost done with the next chapter, but I have no clue what will happen next, so I ask that you be patient with me.

In the mean time, I need to say thank you to:  
Ern Estine 13624 for reviewing (Indeed. We'll see what happens with that soon, I hope!)  
TheRookieKing412 for reviewing (Your review made my day! :D I really appreciate that!)  
AnimeaMari for reviewing (Of course! It wouldn't be any fun if there wasn't at least one, right? Glad you are enjoying so far!)  
mayuralover for reviewing (Drosselmeyer's a bit of a complex character, trying to be good to others, but struggling with something else. I guess I just didn't want to paint him a complete villain. I'm thrilled you like it!)  
and Kairifreak for following, favoring the story (and me!)

And most importantly, thank you for reading this far with me!


	12. Broken and Frightened

"Fakir?" Mytho called shaking the unconscious boy laying on the floor. "Are you okay? Wake up!"  
Fakir's head rolled as he slowly gained his senses. His head ached, his eyes were groggy. He felt like he had been slammed into an oncoming truck. He sat up and looked at Mytho.  
"Hey…" He mumbled.  
Mytho breathed a sigh of relief, "Good to know you're alright. What happened between you and Freya?"

Fakir cocked his head, trying to remember what had happened. "It… we…" Try as he might, Fakir's memory had been fogged up. "I remember closing the door… but for some reason everything else is gone." Mytho stared long and hard at Fakir. He tried taking a look around to see if any struggle had happened. There was a chair knocked over near Fakir's head.  
"Do you think you hit your head on the chair?" He asked. Fakir looked at the chair, then examined his head. There was a bump. So, did Freya push him or something? What did they even talk about?

"Maybe… That's all we have to go on. Unless Freya wants to talk."  
Mytho rolled his eyes, "I doubt it. Knowing her, she'd probably lie or avoid the question. Most likely what she did here."

Mytho helped Fakir up and they headed back to Rue in the living room. They opened the door to hear another one close. Rue was staring at the door with her fists clenched. Rue finally took notice of the two young men walking toward her. They both waited for an explanation as to why she had a look of anger on her face. "Freya stomped out." She glanced at her brother, "What happened in there?" Mytho shook his head. "He doesn't remember. We think she hit him in the head."

Rue's eyes widened with shock. "She attacked you?"  
"Maybe." Fakir said rubbing his head where the bump was.  
"Did she say anything to you before she left?" Mytho asked.  
"She said Fakir was just like the others. And that what she did was an act of desperation."

Now all eyes were on Fakir. Rue spoke up, "Fakir, I don't want to say you did something out of line but… when you went in there to talk, you did sound kind of harsh to her."  
"I don't remember anything. And besides right now, I've been _her_ victim." He responded bitterly.  
"Yes, but that doesn't mean you have to shout at her behind closed doors and who knows what else you did back there." Mytho tried to put gently.

Fakir grit his teeth. Who knows what the hell he did there? All that was running through his mind was how aggravated he was at Freya for lying to him and now _possibly_ attacking him because he wanted the truth from her. Was that so wrong?! That after finding out all this lying from someone he was so close to, he just wanted her to be true… Maybe to salvage what was left of a thorny relationship, or maybe it was to…

Fakir's mind went to that faded image of the red head who's kept his attention for the past couple of days.

Maybe he wanted an excuse. An excuse to get closer to that girl… that mermaid… who had always staid a mystery to him. Fakir put his head in his hand. He was hurt, yes. But was he desperate for something else?

* * *

It had only been a day or two since Drosselmeyer rescued Ahiru. The good news was that she was making decent progress. She wasn't 100% better, but she was able to walk a few feet before the pain insisted it was time to stop. But every little way helped. Most of the time she and Drosselmeyer would just sit and chat about mermaid life. Drosselmeyer wasn't always so keen in talking about his life. However, he did say small bits about his past. Like how he'd met a merman the same day he met his wife. He often joked that it was Ahiru's people that matched him with her. As if they sought how to find people's happiness.

But once that started, the light from his eyes would vanish quickly. He said things liked "The saddest thing about humans is how easily we cause others tragedy. But you," He'd say looking at her, "being a mermaid, you cause great joy. You're blessed, and you should know that."  
To which Ahiru would respond with, "Mr. Drosselmeyer, you shouldn't believe that about yourself." Drosselmeyer would always brush it off, seeing as he deserved no such comfort.

For whatever the reason Ahiru couldn't explain that day, she had to try harder to make him believe it. "Didn't you raise Fakir and Rue? Does that count as tragedy?" Drosselmeyer shook his head, "My wife did. After… after her passing, I failed them. To this day they can't stand me." "But…but…but, once they learn what you did for me, maybe-"

"Trust me Ahiru, they would just twist it into thinking I kidnapped you."  
Ahiru frowned, "No, if they would just listen to me, like _you_ should, they would understand." Drosselmeyer smiled to himself. She was just so optimistic. How could someone like her not be a mermaid? She was untouched by the tragedy of the human world. He eyes went to her feet. His smile faded. Well… almost untouched by this world.

Ahiru pressed on, "Mr. Drosselmeyer?" She said in a small voice, "Why do your children hate you?"  
Drosselmeyer sighed, "There's a lot of reasons for that. Mostly because I never really knew how to be their dad. Every child needs a different approach from their parents, and I refused to give that to them. I guess the final straw was when Rue insisted on moving out and taking Fakir with her." He's hands clenched into fists. "I didn't like the idea of her leaving. Her or Fakir. I tried locking them in their rooms with a new set of keys." Drosselmeyer shook his head, "I couldn't stand it!" He snapped, "I was never good enough for them!" Ahiru sunk in her seat. He turned silent to try to gain control of himself. "I just… I wonder if I had just let them go… and didn't try to take Fakir back… maybe I could have… we could have…"

His hands got tighter. With the brokenness festering in him, he had to let it out on something. He grabbed a mug on the corner table and tossed it at the wall. Ahiru was petrified. She swallowed her fear momentarily to go up to him and try to lower his arm. He sharply turned to face her with anger sweltering from his eyes. Ahiru stood her ground and gently lowered his arm. As she did that, his pain began to disperse. He turned away from her.  
"I'm sorry you had to see me like that." He went over to the shattered mess on the ground. "I guess you could tell this was another reason why they didn't want to stay." Ahiru walked back to where he was and picked up the last of the pieces. That's when she noticed something from one of the shards. "Was this broken before?"  
Drosselmeyer stumbled to pick up the rest of the pieces. "Well… uh… you can see I don't manage my anger very well. I have to fix it quite often."  
Ahiru's eyes widened, "How do you fix it?" "Super glue." He said quickly, "Human device used to fix things like this."  
"And you think that is nothing?" Ahiru said, "Fixing something broken is still a joyful thing, even if it's just something as trivial as fixing this." Drosselmeyer let a small chuckle escape. Maybe she was right. Ahiru was able to find the joy in the small things, especially from this world. Because what Drosselmeyer took for granted and degraded, Ahiru thought it was new and worth something more. Perhaps he could stand to think like that more. Maybe it wouldn't win his kids back, but it could win his own life back…

* * *

Freya looked over the beach and its rocky terrane farther off towards the back. She wandered over to be underneath the major cliff's edge. Everything seemed pretty normal. Stepping her way through the sand she kicked a stone that was hidden by the sands. Curiosity getting the better, she searched for more. These wouldn't be Apatite rocks would they?  
That would mean…

A smile crept across her face for a moment. Then faded as Freya turned her eyes to the ocean. The way the waves cooed, it was as if the ocean was calling to her. Such a spell the ocean would cast on people, so hypnotic, so peaceful, so mysterious. Sorrow overcame her once she looked back at the rocks.

"You're lucky, Ahiru." She muttered to herself, "Not every human would be desperate to find a mermaid with good intentions." She sighed, "But even so… you should have gone through with that spell. No one would have harmed you then." Freya picked up the rocks. Who knows, maybe she could still get a use out of them. She then began the long trek back to her place. It wasn't too dark to worry so much about heading back alone, but after that stunt she pulled with Fakir, it would probably be wise to just let him be for a while. Who knows, maybe she could use a few other tricks if things go too dangerous.

As Freya wandered in her loneliness, she passed up Fakir's work place, unware of the young man who just stepped out of the building for the day.

Autor practically fell over when seeing Freya. His body was paralyzed him upon seeing her. Followed by the overwhelming feeling of drowning. He tried to shake his head, but the thoughts kept coming. A nostalgic cold swept over him, and a stinging sensation brought back horrors he couldn't stand to be a part of anymore. He just about collapsed after that moment. However, it wasn't enough to keep him down. He got up and scrambled after her.

Freya began to feel the eyes of a stranger resting on her. That was normal for her, but this time… it felt strangely familiar. Unsure if she should look back or keep moving forward, Freya stopped in her tracks and without turning around, spoke up. "Who's there?"

Autor stopped. That voice…  
"You…" He said in a low hiss.  
Freya felt her heart drop a few beats at hearing that. She began to tremble as she slowly turned around to cast her gaze upon Autor. Her mouth opened, but no words escaped. "Do you realized what you did to me?!" He snapped.  
Freya got a hold of herself, "Do you realize what happened to me?" She tied to keep her posture and attitude up. She couldn't let him know she was defenseless especially in this public area. Autor came closer, making Freya all the more afraid. "Well now you show back up again after I finally put all this B.S. behind me!" He reached for something in his pocket. Freya desperately looked around for something to defend herself with. She wasn't fast enough. Freya soon came acquainted with a knife blade at the tip of her neck. "So you know what?" He said, "You're coming with me! And you're finally going to give me the truth!"

Realizing she had no other alternative, Freya helplessly followed Autor.

* * *

A/N: Wow, Someone else goes missing. But then again, due to the situation, who knows if they'll even try to save her? Perhaps Freya's secret will have to come out sooner than I expected…

But regardless, I want to say thank you to:  
Ern Estine 13624 for reviewing (Right! That will _hopefully_ be the next chapter!)  
AnimeaMari for reviewing (Hmm… I wonder. Freya's been pretty mysterious, but secrets will come soon!)  
mayuralover for reviewing (Clearly Autor and Freya know each other. Have any theories on their past?)  
AN22 for following  
fakir51 for following, favoring, and reviewing! (Aw, thank you! I hope so too, I'm doing my best! I'm really glad you like it so much!)

And most importantly you, for reading this far with me! I really appreciate it!


	13. Bitter Reunions

Freya did her best to remain calm and take deep breaths as she continued to be forced against her will along the path her captor had her follow. She wasn't exactly comfortable around knives. They were sharp and could draw blood easily if one didn't pay careful attention. And she would really appreciate keeping all her blood in one place, thank you very much! She constantly felt like she was still too close to the blade and would constantly keep trying to find ways to keep it away from her.

"Hey… uh… what's your name?" She asked trying to keep a cool voice.  
"Autor!" He snapped, "What did you forget everything else too?"  
"No!" She said quickly, "Autor, I remember… but why are you doing this?"  
"Because I need the whole story! No one believed me when I told them, and you never came back! They all thought I was insane! The trauma I went through-"  
"Autor…" Freya began, "It got more complicated that day… I'm sorry for your suffering, but you're not the only one who lost just about everything because of what happened."

Autor shoved the knife closer to her neck, causing Freya to tense up. His fist clenched tighter around the hilt of the weapon. How would she know what he went through?! What the hell was she even doing to him to begin with? Was she just playing along because she thought he was crazy too?! The only other explanation was…

No.

He couldn't even fathom the kind of explanation she could give him. But there was no way she could do anything to stop him or change him. He was in control, and she was at his mercy! She would have no choice but to confess the truth. She would!

* * *

The trio of young adults stood before the door of a decrepit old house two of them once called home. This was it. They had waited long enough. An innocent person- um… mermaid, was in there with a deranged old man! There's no telling what had been going on in there. Swallowing what was left of their fear, one of them stepped forward and opened the door. Everything was quite, which put everyone on the end of their nerves.

They slowly made their way into the tarnished home. No sign of Ahiru.  
Ugh, did Drosselmeyer ever clean this place? Maybe that's why he's mad, all the germs he lives with must have poisoned his mind or something…

Mytho accidently knocked something over making a loud noise. Everyone shuttered.

Silence…

"Mr. Drosselmeyer?" A sweet voice called, "Are you alright?"  
That voice alone made everyone's heart jump, but it added a shot of excitement though Fakir's whole self. She was okay! Drosselmeyer hadn't done his worst to her yet. Maybe now they had a chance to get her out of here!

He couldn't help but call out, "Ahiru?" There was no quick response. But the three could hear the echo of someone's bare feet on the tile floor that was slowly getting louder with every slow step. Finally, the girl they were looking for came into view. She looked worn out as she was leaning for support from the door frame. She gave them her warmest smile. "Rue, Mytho, Fakir! I feel like I haven't seen you in such a long time!"

"Ahiru," Rue said coming up to her, "We've been worried sick about you! What happened?"  
"Well… something's wrong with Ms. Edel… I'm not quite sure what yet, but she made me try a spell that almost killed me. If it wasn't for your father, I'd be dead."

Rue's face twisted at the word 'father'. She can't be serious?! Drosselmeyer?! The douche who made her and her brother's life miserable, saved their firend's life?!  
"Ahiru, you have to be joking." She said flatly, "Drosselmeyer only helps people if he benefits from it."  
Ahiru shook her head, "That's not what he's doing now. He's saved my life, plain and simple." Hearing Ahiru say those words really began to hurt. Fakir was getting more on edge the more she talked about his dad like that. As if he was some kind of hero! That mad man should be locked up for all he's done!

Fakir practically marched up to her. "Ahiru, look we can talk about this later, but for now we need to leave." He said trying to take her hand. She shook her head, "I can't leave just yet." Fakir looked her in the eyes, practically pleading, "Why can't you?" Ahiru looked back into his, "I'm still too weak from that spell. If I try to move anymore I'll probably collapse." Fakir's heart stung. Even though she might have been ready to leave, she couldn't. Sure he could have carried her back, and there was a big part of him that wanted to, but for some reason that small part of him was just so powerless to her words that he just wouldn't do it. But before anything else was said, a door swung open. The heavy footsteps of a man shortly followed.

Fear washed over Rue, Mytho, and Fakir, as the dark brooding figure of Drosselmeyer came into view. It was easy to tell he wasn't sure how to feel about his sudden visitors. His face seemed to be twitching between a smile and a frown. He finally gave up and settled for the most neutral face possible. "Good morning kids." He said trying to hold back distain, "I guess you're here for Ahiru, correct." Rue stared her father down, "Yeah, is there a problem with that?" She held nothing back. Drosselmeyer put up his hands, "Well if you want to keep showing up unannounced I'd at least like _some_ heads up. Or you just simply move back in." That last part he tried to keep to himself, but it didn't quite go like he planned.

Rue snapped, "Why? So we can be locked away again while you break and attack everything you touch!?" Drosselmeyer looked as if his head was about to explode. He made one look at Ahiru, who shook her head. That wasn't enough to keep his anger back. "You talk about my mistakes in the past, but what about you?! You left a mermaid to die! If it wasn't for me, your friend would have been dead!"  
Rue crossed her arms, "Oh, so there it is! You're _real_ reason for helping her!"  
"What are you talking about?"  
"You just want to kiss back up to your kids and you're doing it through Ahiru!"  
"What?! No! I only helped her because she was about to die! No thanks to you! Don't turn this around on me!"

And on the argument went.

Ahiru and Mytho both tried to keep the peace, but they just couldn't hold back the river. Finally in a last ditch effort, Ahiru turned her attention to the newly fixed broken mug. She took a deep breath, and leaned her head back. She kept all her focus on the mug, and she began to sing. It wasn't a spell or anything dangerous, it was more of a nursery rhyme. And although that wasn't dangerous, she still felt it safer than signing that nursery rhyme to a human. Her voice made everyone in the room stop. It was haunting how such a powerful and beautiful voice came from such a small young woman. Once everything quieted down, Ahiru halted her song. She looked over at the guilty party.  
"Stop fighting okay!" She said flatly, "This isn't how a family should be acting! I know you've all suffered in the past, but that's just that, _the past_! Can't you at least _try_ to be like a family, even for just a few minutes?"

You know you're in serious trouble when a mermaid calls you out on your faults. Especially one who hasn't been a part of the human world for very long. Rue took in a deep breath and looked at Drosselmeyer. Disgust filled her at his sight, but she did her best to hold herself together. It was easy to see Drosselmeyer was doing the same. He slowly stuck out his hand, "She's right… I shouldn't have picked a fight like that. Truce?" Rue hesitated, but soon connected her hand to his, "She is. Sorry… Truce."

Fakir and Ahiru exchanged a look. That was impressive. Why was she so good with people? Before Fakir could express any form of gratitude, Ahiru's conch began to sing. Fear took hold of her instantly, and it was obvious to everyone. Without thinking, Fakir took her hand. She looked to him. He only gave her a reassuring nod. It was enough for her. She slowly unclicked her conch as the glowing lights filled the air taking the others by surprise.  
"Ahiru?" A voice called, "Who's there with you?"  
"Hi Ms. Edel. I'm with a few friends. They know about mermaids."

Ms. Edel sighed, "Okay. Ahiru, I've finally found a starting point to the spell to bring you home."  
Ahiru paused for a moment. "But… didn't you already send me a spell?"  
"No, Ahiru what are you talking about?"  
"The one you told me not to tell anyone about… the one that almost killed me."

"Ahiru, I never told you that! What do you mean it almost killed you?! I haven't talked to you since the day you told me what happened to you."  
Everyone in the room looked over at each other. Ahiru went on, "I almost died but then one of my friends stopped the spell from being complete and I've been healing up since. If you didn't send me that spell then… who did?"

"I'll have to look into that. If your friends can to research too, that would help. Don't talk to anyone about any of this. And I say that to ALL of you who are listening. Okay?"  
There was a resounding 'yes.'  
"In the meantime, Ahiru here is the rhyme to start us in the right direction to bring you back:

 **Enter the tide  
at the full moon's high.  
When lovers kiss  
begins eternal bliss,  
only then shall her stain  
no longer be her reign**

Ahiru sat as those words sunk in. Most of the rhyme made sense, but what about the middle part? She looked at Drosselmeyer to see if he had an answer. He understood immediately what she needed.  
"Obviously a significant event between two people must occur before you can turn back into a mermaid. Ms. Edel, I don't suppose you have any history on this rhyme do you?"  
Ms. Edel complied instantly. "More often than not, mermaids in Ahiru's situation lost their love from the human that they tasted blood from. It's suspected that 'when lovers kiss' it's supposed to be lovers connected to the mermaid in question, possibly a wedding with people close to her."

All eyes were on Rue and Mytho now. Drosselmeyer sighed, "So, what you're saying Edel, is that Ahiru would have to be a part of a wedding?"  
"Possibly. After all, Ahiru didn't become a human for the love of a man, right?"  
Ahiru turned a little red at that moment. "Well… no, I didn't." She suddenly felt a pang in her chest. Why did it hurt to say with Fakir near by?

Fakir's heart felt a little heavy. That's when he realized. Damn… he got caught up in her. Even if she didn't care about him, Fakir was falling hard for Ahiru. And it rattled him to no end. Ms. Edel broke up the thoughts running through the two's minds. "Then, is there someone Ahiru knows, that she loves in a certain way, that's getting married?"

The group turned towards Rue and Mytho. Ahiru spoke up, "There is a girl here that I'm starting to love like a sister. She's getting married." Ms. Edel didn't say anything at first. "I think… that would work. If you are a part of the wedding, then by nightfall, you must return to the beach you became a human from and enter the waters. Then, you will be a mermaid again."  
Ahiru could hardly keep her excitement down! Geez, it'd been too long without her tail, and feet kind of sucked, especially how much pain she was in for just taking a few steps! But there was still a nagging feeling that left her a little mellow. Having to leave the others behind was going to be hard, but it wasn't like she was leaving forever right?  
"Okay Edel. It can be done." Drosselmeyer said. The group said their goodbyes and the lights returned to the conch. The discomfort in the air was strong. If Drosselmeyer had really save Ahiru for her own sake, he would have to go through with his daughter's marriage. He wasn't ready to swallow that. He looked back at the cheerful mermaid still holding his son's hand.  
Oh no…

There may be more growing here than the young woman realizes. Can she handle leaving these people? Especially with what was brewing between her and Fakir.  
Well, this was all they could do now. Drosselmeyer sighed. Now he had to take care of this, for this girl- mermaid's sake. Maybe it was time to let this all go. He turned to his daughter. "I guess you better make sure your wedding is up and running. I won't stand in the way then."

Rue shot him a confused look, "Well… thanks." He nodded and turned to Mytho, "You take good care of Rue then. I can't keep a hold on her, but she loves you enough to stay with you. So treasure it!" _Unlike I did_. Mytho being a little caught off guard answered, "Of course Mr. Drosselmeyer. I wouldn't plan it any other way." They shared a smile before they all turned to Ahiru.  
"So, what happens now?" Mytho asked. Before Ahiru could give an answer, she heard a soothing but faint noise. Instinctively she let go of Fakir's hand and tried to follow the sound. It was so familiar, and from what she could tell, it was in danger. She began walking out the door until she finally collapsed at the pain. Everyone immediately rushed over to her. Ahiru tried to push them away so she could listen better. She tried to push herself up but her feet refused.

Desperately she said, "I have to follow it! Someone needs me!"  
"Who needs you?" Mytho asked as he and Fakir tried to keep her steady. "The voice… that faint voice. Someone needs help!" Mytho and Fakir shared a look before Mytho nodded. Taking the hint, Fakir said, "I can carry you over there, just tell me where we need to go, okay?"

Ahiru nodded and climbed onto Fakir's back. From then on, with the others close behind, Ahiru led Fakir where to go as they all listened carefully for the source of this voice. The closer they got, the more everyone began to hear it. But it was more than just a voice, it was a song. A plea for help through music. Perhaps that's why Ahiru could hear it from so far away, because mermaids and music are a way of communication. But wait, did that mean they were looking for another mermaid? And in this shady neighborhood?

Finally, they came to a boarded up house where the singing was coming from. That's when Drosselmeyer noticed something. Of to the side of this house was a beat up radio that was still making a bit of noise… a noise that sounded like the song Ahiru might have been hearing. "Ahiru, is this what you were hearing?" He said lifting up the radio to her. Ahiru stared at it for a moment then shook her head. "That's a mermaid's trick. If we're trying to hide from humans or hunters we sing to an object. Only the humans can hear a song coming from that object. We hear the actual singing so we can go rescue our fellow merfolk." Ahiru turned her head towards the house. "The singing is coming from in there, I know it!"

Everyone got closer to the house and peered through the window. Most of the house was blacked out. But Fakir and Ahiru picked the right window. There they could see a door closed at the moment, and a girl tied to a chair. Wait, that girl looks really…

You have _got_ to be kidding! This… this didn't make any sense! Why? Why was _Freya_ the one who called out to Ahiru?! Fakir looked up at her, "Is that who I think it is?" Ahiru stared closer to the small crack in the window. "It has to be… but how? The only other way she could have done that is to steal a conch. So… maybe she got a hold of one?"

Right then, the door in the back opened up. There appeared Autor in the door, and with a knife. Ahiru's stomach dropped. "Why…why does that man have _that_?" She asked trembling. Fakir shook his head, "Autor was always a strange guy at work. But I don't get what Freya has to do with anything."

The others watched as what looked like a some-what casual conversation quickly escalate into an interrogation. It was difficult to tell what was begin said. Until finally the last move was made. Autor struck Freya with his knife creating a big enough would for blood to flow out. Autor jumped back in panic. Not because of what he had done, but because of what came out.

Freya's blood was purple.

Ahiru went pale. "She… she's a purple-tailed mermaid… she's a part of the royal family…"

Everyone was struck silent.

* * *

A/N: Okay, I reserve the right to say that AnimeaMari totally called it. If I could find a way to reward you, I totally would!

Anyway, I want to apologize for taking so long. I had three tests and a project all going on at once so there wasn't really any time to write. And since I'm still stumbling around in the dark, I'm also going to have to plot out the next bits and ending for you all.

Finally, I would like to give my thanks to:  
Ern Estine 13624 for reviewing (Sorry to have made you wait for so long! But yeah, they're back together now! So no worries right?)  
AnimeaMari for reviewing (Okay, your comment seriously made my day! XD)  
mayuralover for reviewing (Don't worry, you'll find out soon what's going on between these two!)  
RevivedAngel for following  
Jacky Kiroko for following

And you for reading this far with me!


	14. Forgotten Beyond the Waves

_I have long since forgotten my days as a mermaid. But the further I stray from the rules of such a life, the more I yearn to return to it. Fate is a cruel monster sometimes. Placing someone into the most difficult situations and forcing hands… to walk down a path of such shameful exile that can never be undone! To be forever marked by the stain of your sin which can never be blotted out!_

 _Being a purple tailed mermaid isn't all that special, but from the outside looking in, merfolk thought it was the best thing to be born into. No, fate already knows who you should be from the beginning. It's up to you to choose to follow it, or wreck it._

 _I was born into royalty. I was lucky. I was able to stay with my birth family. Most mermaids don't. The worst is when your tail means to live a life of magic, the common trope for the mother's of those tails is death. Purple tails were harmless to bare. From birth, I was to learn edicate and lifestyle. I had to know how to act, speak, and make decisions. To take a whole situation and seek the most benefits. But from what I could tell we too were ruled over by the system. Whatever was your gift at birth was the one you were destined to pursue. I never did understand why we had a royal family._

 _I only realized why when_ that _day had arrived._

 _During one of my field lessons, I had to observe and understand how the weather mermaids guided the clouds. I never thought much of it. I figured the merfolk knew how to do their job, there was no need to intervene. Until I noticed something. Now, would I have the mind of a shark, I probably would have mistaken it for a large seal._

But mermaids knew better than that.

 _I cried out, "Halt your movement!" In that instance, my subjects obeyed. "We must do something about that boat!" The merfolk looked to one another to find a solution. Finally one swam forward.  
"My lady, the most we can do is use the storm to warn them of the oncoming danger. Thank you for pointing that out." I grumbled to myself. I wasn't completely willing to just hope the boat would see the warning. Alas, we could only guide the storms not control them. _

_So I waited._

 _I hoped the boat would have caught on to the dangerous weather approaching. As the waves rocked violently above my head, the boat continued to wrestle with the ocean. It refused to move. There was nothing we could do. As the merpeople continued to move the storm forward and past the boat, I began to see it become active. Yes! They just might make it._

 _That thought was rushed. By the time the boat began to make its long trek back to shore, the waves over turned it. I saw three humans immediately get tossed out. Two of them were clearly adults. The third, who I noticed got caught by something heavy, was a child sinking towards the sea floor. My gills flared as fear took over me.  
I saw him.  
He was drowning.  
But what if he saw me?! _

_I couldn't stand leaving him to drown. Not after I tried to save him beforehand. For once, screw the rules! I was justified to save that poor boy. I dove after him as he struggled to unlatch his shirt from… whatever that heavy object was. I think humans called it an anchor?_

 _I came up to him.  
There was no denying it this time. He had seen me. I put my finger to my lips and worked to unhook his shirt. Heehee, I can still remember his dumbstruck face perfectly. My first human interaction, and although it was a rescue I still found humor in it. After I pulled his shirt free, I pointed him up to the surface. He tried, but he didn't have enough strength to do it. I took his wrist and helped pull him above. He inhaled so much air, while fighting his coughing fit. Once he got ahold of himself he looked to me with the rain still falling. _

" _Who… are you?" He asked, bewildered by my sight. I held out my hand, since I knew that was human greetings. "Freya. Who are you?" It seemed as if he had forgotten how to speak, seeing as he kept opening and closing his mouth. "Autor." The boy said. "Will… I see you again?" He asked as we shook hands._

 _Everything halted in my mind. Looking back now, it was clear to see this begun my steps away from the mermaid rules. Without a word, I nodded in response. "Just don't fall over in the water again, okay? I may not be able to help you next time." I dove down, which gave Autor a good look at my tail, just to reinforce that a mermaid had saved his life. I swam deeper into the water but watched carefully above me to make sure Autor made it back to shore safely. What I hadn't anticipated was the very mermaid who spoke to me immediately after that instant._

" _What was that?!" A shrill voice demanded. My heart dropped count or two. I turned to face my mother, the queen of the mermaids. "I… I had…"  
"You saved a human!" She snapped, "And with absolutely no caution what so ever!"  
"But mother, we used to have ties to humans. And are we not justified to save drowning humans?"  
"That was in the past. Before humans began to become greedy. And we can only save them only discreetly. Which was obviously NOT what you did!" _

" _So I was just supposed to let him drown?!" I was so furious. Why would my mother leave me with such thoughts? It was clear she took offence to that. "Maybe if you took a second to think reasonably you could have enacted the invisibility spell and help him them." She shook her head, "Freya… because of what you have done I-"_

" _No!" I shouted, "You can't do that!"  
"If a queen denies the rules, what good are they? You knew this as well as I did. Princess Freya henceforth you are stripped of your title and are hereby banished from the seas." _

_In that instant, I could hear the banishment chant before a swarm of bubbles surrounded me and carried me up to the surface. That's all purple tails were good for, enforcing rules, even among their own kind. From that point on I was exiled from my home, my paradise, to this cruel world. I struggled to get by. I started off being good. I tried to uphold what little of the mermaid laws I could follow. But there were too many to keep and it wasn't enough to survive. I began to steal, to cheat, to lie._

 _It was easy to do when you were allowed to keep your magic. But it couldn't last._

 _One night, I… I… did something that I should have known better, something that was all my fault. There was this man, who smelled of alcohol. It started with a whistle. That happened a lot for some reason, so I thought nothing of it. But he started to follow me…_

 _I was scared. I wasn't sure why, but I could tell something was wrong here. But I didn't know what to do. Finally, he surpassed me. And before I knew it, he had me pinned. Fear overwhelmed me. I struggled to break free, but he stayed put. There was nothing left to do. Just as I was about to surrender, a thought crossed my mind._

 _Sing to him! Show him you can't be owned like this!_

 _That was the most sacred of laws to the mermaids. To break that would be something I could never take back. I could never be forgiven if I did this. But I would lose something else if I didn't do this…_

 _Before the last second, I sang to him. He surrendered his will to me instantly. And as he left me and the song had ended, my eyes instantly turned green and my conch necklace shattered. Just as my attacker surrendered his free will to my song, I had surrendered my life as a mermaid to become a siren. All my magic had moved to my voice. My only allies now were my looks and clever tactics._

 _As a few years passed, I had gone through men like water. It always ended the same. When it came down to it, men always turned aggressive when they weren't in power. My magic couldn't hold them forever. I thought Fakir was going to be different. He seemed easy going. But then… she arrived. My last shot at happiness in this form was stolen right out from under me by fate yet again! I tried to take the step ahead of fate, but then that was how Fakir showed his true colors. Just like all the others, I had to escape by singing to him. Just like the others he collapsed. An easy way to cover my tracks…_

 _I knew I had to start all over again, but right as I was about to do that I saw that boy all once more. I saw that amazement in his eyes just like before, but it was tainted with anger. I could only imagine what the years had done to him. I doubt anyone would have believed him… I guess they deemed him insane. I never knew what they did to people like that, but I was sure it was bad._

 _And now, I waited here. Tied to a chair in a creepy old house held captive by the very boy I saved. But maybe… it would finally end. My life sucked, so now… could it just end? Could I finally quit this life by his hands?_

 _But part of me insisted to keep trying… who knows, I could get out of this and try again like I always do… but until then I don't have any fight left in me._

* * *

A/N: Took a different approach to this chapter. So in case you were confused, this is Freya's recollection of what had happened to her. I also tried to keep true to the rating of the story without going into too much detail. Any other questions, you can message me and I can try to answer it for you!

So I would really like to thank:  
AnimeaMari for reviewing (Yes she is! But now she's something more than that! You're still right though.)  
Ern Estine 13624 for reviewing (And the funny part is I almost didn't make her one. I hope you enjoyed this one!)  
taco tree for reviewing, favoring the story, and following me! (I'm really thrilled you like the story so much! Yeah, that twist was something I was debating on doing or not. I guess it was a good thing I kept in then, huh?)

And of course, you for reading this far with me! Stay wonderful okay!


	15. Old Wounds

"What do you mean she's a purple-tailed mermaid?" Rue asked. Fakir put Ahiru down and she looked at Rue right in the eyes. "Every merperson, no matter what state they're in, has blood that is the same color as her tail… Freya's blood is purple!"

"She's right." Fakir added, "I saw it too." Fakir's attention turned toward the door. "I'm going to talk some sense into Autor." Ahiru felt a strong buildup of fear at those words. She reached for his arm and took it. "Don't… at least, not alone. He has a knife…" _And I don't want you hurt_.

Before Fakir could say anything, Mytho spoke up. "I'll go with him. Autor won't cause any trouble if there's two of us there." Fakir nodded in agreement. But Ahiru still didn't let go. He gently placed his hand over hers. "I'll be okay. I promise." Reluctantly she let go. A new thought puzzled her though. She was so concerned for Fakir… she knew she had thoughts about him often, but nothing more… so why was it so important to her what became of him?  
Hmm… Ms. Edel would probably call it an aftereffect of the breath of life incantation. Especially spending so much time around him. Perhaps it's just like her own emotions and she'll lose it in time. But until then, it didn't seem wrong to act on this feeling, right?

The three outside watched as the two young men pushed open the door and made their way inside. It was hard to be stealthy in a place like this. The floor creaked with every step. The wood also seemed to dip a little under your feet. This place was really dusty too. How could anyone breathe in here? Plus, was there any lighting in this house?! It was almost pitch black had the front door not been left open. After a short amount of perseverance though the sickly old house, Fakir and Mytho found the door to where Freya and Autor remained. They paused and listened for a moment.

"You didn't come back! You said you would!" Autor was sobbing dramatically. "Autor, I told you…" Freya said, "I was banished. I couldn't have come back. And I couldn't reveal the truth to your parents either. You're not supposed to know about mermaids existing."  
"Liar!" There was a slap. "Then why did I see you?!"  
"You were drowning, and I was reckless! What more do you want?!"

There was another slap, "Why couldn't you come!? You promised!" Clearly, Autor had hit a breaking point. The pain radiated from his voice. It was almost as if his very presence was giving off the destruction of himself. They shouldn't wait anymore. Mytho gave a silent count off.

3…  
2…  
1…

SLAM!

The boys heaved the door open with their combined strength, taking both Autor and Freya by surprise. The two rushed Autor and heaved him against a wall. The house moaned in response. "What the hell is wrong with you, Autor?" Fakir demanded. "Who kidnaps a girl and starts crying while attacking her?!" Autor struggled in their grasp, attempting to use the knife as his escape. Mytho caught on quickly and stole the blade away. Autor's escape was gone. He had to speak.

"I just didn't want to be crazy…" He whispered.  
"So you kidnap a girl and attack her to prove you're point?!" Fakir snarled. While Fakir had Autor at his mercy, Mytho moved over to Freya and began sawing off her binds. Autor glanced over to them, "What are you doing?! Do you have any idea what she's capable of?"

Fakir slammed him again to the wall. "Hey, look at me! What did you have to gain from doing this?!"  
Autor looked back at him, "So that I'm not crazy!" He said pleading. "Why Autor? Why do you think you're crazy?" Fakir asked gently.

Freya's ropes were gone. Mytho helped her up, "Now get out of here. Ahiru, Rue and Drosselmeyer are waiting for you outside." Freya was surprised hearing the others were waiting for her. It was good to know that her cry for help worked, but she didn't think they would come. She was still frozen from all that's happened. "You need to go!" Mytho said, trying to guide her out the door. She finally got a hold of herself and headed out the door and into she presence of the last people she wanted to see, but were the only ones she'd be happy to see right now.

All that remained now was how to deal with Autor once they figured out why he did all this.

* * *

Freya rushed out the door and was unable to stop until she was caught in Ahiru's arms. She was paralyzed as all that had happened came running back to her. Her past as a mermaid, her present as a siren, and her future which was left with the very person keeping her from falling over. "Freya?" Ahiru said gently, "Why didn't you just tell me?" Freya's mouth refused to speak. All had to be said in order to answer her question. But to muddy her name even more than where it already was… it was humiliating. And already knowing how Rue (plus Fakir and Mytho) felt about her, was there even a point to coming clean? Was she was even ready for that?

"I'm sorry…" She mumbled. "Sorry for what?" Rue asked.

"Sorry I almost killed you…"  
That broke her. She crumbled in Ahiru's arms as tears filled her eyes. Ahiru looked to Rue. She looked like she was ready to rip Freya out of her arms and shake her down. Ahiru, although shocked, knew this wouldn't get them anywhere. She needed to know more. "Freya, what do you mean?" She asked, trying to hold back the fear in her voice.

"Sirens can manipulate their voice to sound like anyone you want to hear…." She said through her sobs, "I thought… I thought those apatite rocks would be a way to get rid of you… If I had researched more… I wouldn't have… I wasn't trying to…"

Ahiru was still holding Freya, but she wasn't able to look at her. "Were you trying to send me home? Or was there another reason…?"

"I just wanted you gone…" She whispered "I didn't think what 'gone' meant." There wasn't anything wort saying now. They just needed to wait for Fakir and Mytho to come back now. Ahiru didn't want to hear anymore.

* * *

Autor had revealed all. His encounter with Freya, how he went looking for her to the point of obsession, even the mental hospital they sent him to to find out why he thought like this. Fakir sighed and let Autor go. "Autor… you can take comfort in knowing that mermaids are real. But that doesn't mean you had to actively kidnap and torture her just to prove a point."

"Then what are you going to do with me?" Autor asked. "To act responsibly," Mytho began, "We might just have to call the police for kidnap and assault." He placed his hand on Autor's shoulder, "Are you willing to take responsibility for that?" After a long pause, Autor nodded solemnly. And they stepped out of the house.

* * *

After the police had arrived and taken Autor away, Fakir couldn't help but notice how Freya was still clinging to Ahiru, even though it seemed like nether one was happy about the situation. It really didn't help that he and Mytho were told what had become of Freya and what she had done. But it really hurt Fakir more than anyone else. Why you may ask? Easy, because if she was a siren, that meant he was just Freya's tool. She never saw him as who he was, but rather as someone she could use with just a simple tune from her voice. Hell, did she even see him as a person? Was he worth anything to her?! And how much of his feeling towards her was real and how much was brewed up from her spell?

He had suffered enough by her. This thing, whatever you called their relationship, wasn't real. It wasn't even worth saving. And he was sure Freya knew that as well. Their relationship was over. What became of Freya wouldn't be Fakir's problem. With the others in his sight, Fakir brought up the question on everyone's mind.

"So… what happens now?"

No one had a quick answer. Most of the group was all but ready to leave Freya to her own devices and be done with it. Even Freya wasn't against that option. The only one who saw through Freya's act was Ahiru. Since no one else was going to address it, she would! "I don't think we should send Freya off like this." Every eye was on Ahiru now. "Ahiru, why would you defend her?" Rue began, "She tried to kill you."

"But she said she didn't know any better."  
"Ahiru," Drosselmeyer began, "Are you only doing this because you found out she was a mermaid?"  
"Maybe… I don't know. I only know if I was in Freya's condition, I'd like some form of help. And that's what I'm trying to do, offer help."

"Well then what would you suggest we do?" Drosselmeyer began. Ahiru sat back for a moment to think on this. "What if we help her until the wedding? Then she can make her choice on what to do next. Just to give her time to think on what to do and heal up." There didn't seem to be too much discomfort towards this plan. As the others agreed, they headed back to Drosselmeyer's so that he could heal Freya to the best of his abilities. Ahiru was allowed to stay with Rue and Fakir again to work on the final details on the wedding.

But right before they parted ways, Rue pulled Freya aside.  
"Just so you know. We've found a way to turn Ahiru back into a mermaid. And it all depends on the wedding going without a hitch. So listen carefully." Rue looked Freya dead in the eyes, "If you do ANYTHING to uproot this wedding, I WILL make your life a living Hell!" She hissed.  
Freya didn't fight back, "I won't do anything to your wedding. What would I gain from doing so? I lost Fakir, was manhandled by his coworker, and the rest of you hate me already. I'll leave your special day alone. But if you don't mind me asking, how is your wedding supposed to undo the spell?"

"A rhyme that her mentor told her about… 'Enter the tide at the full moon's high. When lovers kiss begins eternal bliss, only then shall her stain no longer be her reign'. If I remember correctly."

Freya thought over their plan. Something about it didn't quite add up. "Um Rue… if you don't mind hearing me out, I think you might be interpreting the rhyme wrong. I could-"  
"You could what?" Rue said sharply, "Tell us a lie to throw off our plan? No. I don't need to hear any of that. Ms. Edel already said this should work and that's all we need!"

Freya staid quiet. With nothing left to say, she walked away towards Drosselmeyer's house. Rue walked away with a scowl on her face.

* * *

A/N: I think there will be two chapters left. We shall see. Oh also, I'm debating between my next story. I'm thinking of a crossover between Romeo X Juliet (And maybe Saint Tail) or doing a crossover with Disney's The Hunchback of Notre Dame. I'll put a poll on my page so you guys can pick which one you'd like to read next!  
Anyway, I would like to give my thanks to:

Ern Estine 13624 for reviewing (Yeah, Freya and Autor had pretty sucky lives. :( )  
mayuralover for reviewing (This is a sticky situation Freya is in. I like to think it's not really anyone's fault. It was just bad timing and bad thinking. But I wouldn't worry too much, sirens only have power when they feel like they can control anyone. Clearly Freya doesn't feel like trying anything.)  
Guest for reviewing (Thank you! I appreciate the support! :) )  
annajean1966 for following and favoring the story (and me!)

And especially you for reading this far with me!


	16. Finale

The day came too soon.  
Quick, unexpected, exciting! It was finally happening. Today, Rue and Mytho would wed, as well as tonight, when Ahiru would return to the waves where she belonged.  
But this morning was a scramble. Everyone was doing everything around Rue. Hair, make-up, dress, jewelry, the whole nine yards.

It was astounding to Ahiru how much trouble people go through just to look presentable for such an occasion. The other strangers even tried to help Ahiru. But she didn't need help to fit in this… what did Rue say it was?... a maid of honor's dress, was that right? She didn't want anyone touching her hair, since it acted so differently since she left the sea. And why was it necessary she have them paint her face with all these colors. It was all just so bizarre! However, there was nothing that could be done, and she guessed if Rue thought it was okay then it was okay to wear all this…

Ahiru went over again in her head what she was supposed to do. Hold these flowers, wait for the music, after… 5 counts, was it?... walk across the way and link arms with Fakir. From there they walk down the aisle then break apart when they get to the front and sit down. Then the rest was smooth sailing!

And that was exactly how it went. Ahiru was surprised she didn't fall over in her heels. It was probably because she had Fakir to hold her up. Her heart raced at his touch. But it still didn't make much sense. Why was this happening to her? And did she struggle taking her eyes away from him throughout most of the ceremony? Sure, she watched Rue as she floated down the aisle. But after that… she only saw Fakir. She liked it… but, why was this?

Hmm, it seemed like all she could do was ask 'why'. Either way, the whole wedding ceremony ended well. Rue and Mytho now shared rings, a last name, and a future together. And then, from Ahiru's point of view, everything went crazy! People were suddenly not themselves. They were talking differently, giving off a different (and really unpleasant) smell, as well as moving much more sluggish. There was loud music and constantly changing lights. It was all so overwhelming! Ahiru was all but ready to duck out of there. That was until…

A very slow and sweet song began to play, breaking up the chaos. And there in the middle of it all, Rue and Mytho were gliding so gracefully across the floor. Ahiru could have watched forever. And she almost did, had not a certain someone offered her his hand.  
Ahiru looked at Fakir's hand quizzically. "Is… is something wrong? Am I supposed to do something?" She almost panicked. Fakir let out a small chuckle. "No… I'm just asking if you would like to dance."

Ahiru stared at him for one long moment.  
"Dance?" She echoed. "How do you… dance?"  
"Well, if you come with me, I can show you." He smiled. After that, she took his hand and followed his every move.

If you were thinking this dance was perfect and romantic, you clearly had not experienced your first dance yet. And that awkward swaying from side to side while keeping your hands on his neck and on her hips doesn't count! On the contrary, Ahiru was a bit of a cluts. And those high heels weren't helping any either. But for some odd reason, Fakir kept dancing with her. By the end she got the basics of it and that was enough for her. And that gave her enough time to leave the floor as the loud sounds and sporadic lights came back on. It was a sweet fleeting moment to remember though.

The rest of the night was one big blur of people not acting sane, loud and obnoxious sound, and seizure inducing lights. Besides that moment from before, nothing else stuck out to Ahiru. And soon enough, the party had ended and the newlyweds, the old father, as well as the man and maid of honor were all at the shore line.

"Well, this is it." Drosselmeyer said, clapping a hand on his son's shoulder. "Yeah, what about it?" Fakir muttered, not pleased to have Drosselmeyer trying to be so cheeky with him. "Are you strong enough to face this?" "What are you talking about?" Drosselmeyer laughed. "I see how to you look at her. I saw that dance. I may not know you well, but I know when someone is falling in love."

There was a strong pang in Fakir's heart. "I'm not." He stammered, "Besides, she's a mermaid who needs to go home." Drosselmeyer shook his head. It's a shame his son is acting like this, but after than line it was clear. Fakir was in love with Ahiru, so much to the point he let her live her life as a mermaid without knowing how he felt. One of the strongest kinds of loves out there. This was the kind that lasted.

Ahiru stood at the line where the waves and the water met. She looked up at the moon. It's light welcomed her as it pulled the water to and fro. She felt the sand in between her toes for the last time. She sighed and turned towards the others. "I'm ready." She looked at them individually as she spoke, "I'm really going to miss all of you." Her eyes stopped at Fakir, "I really mean it." She said sweetly. Though it wasn't known to the other, both Fakir and Ahiru's hearts began to be weighed down by sorrow.

Ahiru began to sing the rhyme to the moon.

 **Enter the tide at the full moon's high.**

The moon replied:

 **Enter child of mine, I leave not a soul behind**

Ahiru began walking into the water as she continued:

 **When lovers kiss begins eternal bliss,**

The moon continued:

 **Accept the their love, yours shall be done**

That was Mytho and Rue's cue. And they shared a kiss in the moon's light. Ahiru continued the rest:

 **Only then shall her stain no longer be her reign**

After a long pause the moon did not reply. Ahiru's legs did not change back to mermaid. She remained human. Fear washed over her. Did she forget a part of the rhyme? No she didn't. So what went wrong?

"I bet you're all wondering what's wrong." A voice called from behind. All eyes were now on Freya. Most were scornful, but one pair was genuinely hopeful upon seeing her. "Rue, I told you about this." She said flatly. "She did?" Ahiru asked. Rue glared at Freya, "What do you know?"

Freya came closer to the others. "You think I didn't try a multitude of ways to become a mermaid again before I became a siren. If you knew your mermaid history better you would know that the rhyme only works for mermaids in Ahiru's situation that _lost_ their love. Ahiru never became a human to be with someone she loved, correct?" Ahiru nodded.

Without another word, Freya pulled Rue and Fakir in to whisper to them. "The solution is. She has to feel she's lost a love."  
"But she lost the love of a sister by leaving." Rue stated.  
"True, but it wasn't your blood she tasted." And with that Freya and Rue turned to Fakir. His face went red. "Well what am I supposed to do?" He asked. "She clearly has feelings for you." Freya answered, "If she thinks she's lost your love, she'll go back to being a mermaid." Fakir's stomach churned at the idea of deceiving Ahiru like this. And a big part of him didn't want to. "How would we do that?" He finally asked.

Freya shrugged, "You could lie to her, say you don't feel the same way about her. But for the spell to work you might have to go to uncomfortable territory… and kiss me." She mumbled that last part. No way would she try to force that idea. And the others took notice of her discomfort. But it all hinged on if Fakir was willing to. Fakir swallowed hard. He stepped away from the others and headed towards Ahiru. They looked at each other for a moment. "What's wrong Fakir?" She asked.

He took her hands. "Ahiru, are you willing to give up everything to go back home?" "Fakir, I don't understand." He sighed, "There is NOTHING you don't question or wonder about? You just want to go back home with nothing to worry about?" Her answer would change any of his actions at that moment.

"Actually…" She started, "I… I have to be honest. I've…" she started to turn red, "I've been watching you a lot lately… and thinking about you too! I don't know what this is though. If I had any wonders it would be that."

Fakir felt a beat of his heart skip. "Ahiru… what happens when you think of me?" "I don't know how to describe it. Excitement, fear, nervousness? Wanting your approval, your attention. Especially if you're happy. Oh, seeing you smile was always so wonderful and scary all at once!" She could feel her face heat up even more, "Oh… was that wrong? Am I sick?" Fakir started to laugh.

"Wha… what's so funny?" She asked.  
He smiled at her. "Nothing, it makes me happy to hear you say that." Ahiru turned an even brighter red as he continued, "Most would say you're in love." Ahiru blinked. "Love?"  
"What do you think about that?" He asked.  
She thought about it for a moment. "I… right now, I really like it."  
"Would you want to keep it?"  
"I… I could keep this feeling? Even… if I'm a silver tailed mermaid?" Fakir's smile faded, "Well, you won't be a mermaid. But you'd stay a human… with me." Now it all clicked. The cure to losing your emotions, was giving up your tail. Ahiru felt the sand on her toes, the warmth of Fakir's hands. Maybe… maybe human life wouldn't be so bad…

"Well… do you feel love like I do?" She asked. Fakir's smile returned. "If you're asking if I love you, I do." He said, "You've had me captivated since we first became friends. And you've been invading my thoughts even when I was under a siren's spell. Just a moment ago, if you wanted nothing more than to go home, I would have found a way to give it to you, no questions asked. But I had to know before I took that chance. And now I can say what I've been dying to say for so long." He pulled her closer, "I love you, Ahiru." In that instant, he dipped his head down and kissed her.

Everyone was both confused and happy for the two. Seeing as they thought Fakir was about to break her heart. Even so, the choice was made and the spell was incomplete. It was too late to change otherwise. But the night was not over. And that was because an idea had struck Ahiru. She pulled away from Fakir and ran to Drosselmeyer. She motioned for him to bend down and let her whisper in his ear. Once that was done, Drosselmeyer looked at her. "Are you sure about that?" "Yes, she's suffered enough."

Ahiru ran to Freya and dragged her to the tides. She looked back at Drosselmeyer and nodded. "Ahiru, I want to use that wish you owe me now." She smiled back at him. "I wish for Freya to be a mermaid again, clean slate and all." "It can be done." She said in response. Freya was taken completely by surprise. Ahiru had Freya kneel underneath her. Ahiru cupped her hands and filled them with water. After chanting a rhyme, she opened her hands and poured the water over Freya's head while saying, "Be clean again."

In that instant, Freya's form was turned to sea foam and washed back into the sea. Everyone panicked, well except for Ahiru. She waited a moment, and soon in the distance what looked like a large fish made an appearance. But as it drew closer to shore, people began to notice similar features such as blond hair. There appeared Freya. Her smile was bright, her eyes were blue, and around her neck was a new conch. "Ahiru," she said, "Thank you." Ahiru laughed, "I didn't do anything. It was Drosselmeyer's wish." "But it was you that asked it of him. I don't know how to thank you!"

"You can thank me by going home. And go do some good as the merfolk's true princess." Freya nodded, "For now. But if you ever need anything, please don't hesitate to ask it of me!" "I will."

* * *

Ahiru found that giving up her home for love was one of the hardest choices she had to make. But she was never be alone, surrounded by people who loved her more than just a mentor could. And in time, Ms. Edel was able to let go. She figured her apprentice had made this choice on her own, and since Ms. Edel had no power left to try and change that, she grew to accept it. And it was even better that she could say that it was her former apprentice that had returned to them their princess.

Freya herself returned home. And although at first her mother hesitated to accept her, she realized that Freya was her daughter and she shouldn't have to disown her again now that her slate had been wiped clean. And because of that experience her daughter had grown the wiser. Perhaps not in the way either would have wanted, but they saw this as a way to not let the past hold them back and instead focus on now and how that could improve the future. In due time, Freya did become queen and you can bet she found ways to lead her people and reconnect with the human world in a way that were safe. She was grateful to have Ahiru's help with that.

As for Ahiru and Fakir, they continued to grow in their love and eventually married. By that point, Ahiru had been able to help ease the tensions between Drosselmeyer and his children. Was their relationship perfect? Well, no. But it was healthy enough to where they could listen to one another. Yes, there were still a few fights and sleepless nights, but they always came back together.

And life was never perfect, always messy, always moving. But even in those dark days, Ahiru would constantly seek the joy she had from her life and made the most of it.

THE END

* * *

A/N: Okay, so I guess I lied. Sorry to let you guys down like this. I thought I was going to cut it off at Fakir asking what Ahiru wanted to do, then have you guys pick if she should stay or go. But then I figured ya'll would have wanted her to stay (most likely), so I just kept going. I might write an alternate ending or continuation of some kind. You can let me know if ya'll want me to do that or not.

I want to give my final thanks to:  
taco tree for reviewing (Sorry, it was one chapter. But I certain hope it lived up to your expectations! Thanks for your reviews!)  
Ern Estine 13624 for reviewing (Thank you so much for sticking with me! It makes me so happy to know that you enjoyed the story so much!)  
mayuralover for reviewing (Indeed! It was supposed to be someone else! But we reached the end! Thank you so much for reading!)  
AnimeaMari for reviewing (Well, they did kiss, but it wasn't supposed to be that way. Thanks for reading with me!)  
Rosalix Archangel for following and favoring the story  
Alapest for following the story.

And most importantly you, for putting up with me to the end! Thank you so much and I hope I entertained you well!


	17. Epolouge: Generations to Come

A/N: So this is just an epilogue I thought of. Just a really simple and cute scene.  
Now I have a few ideas for a new story, but their crossovers (which I just might put in the Princess Tutu section anyway :P ) I left a poll on my profile so you guys can check them out and tell me which ones you like. (Or if you don't want to check here's the ideas:

Princess Tutu/RomeoXJuliet  
Princess Tutu/Disney's Hunchback of Notre Dame  
Princess Tutu/Once Upon A Time)

Also I forgot to thank fanfictionloverkali for following and favoring the story! You are wonderful and I'm sorry I forgot to tell you that!

While I am thanking people I want to thank:  
Ern Estine 13624 for reviewing (I'm glad you liked it, but that chapter actually would have been the ending. Then this idea came to me, so… I hope you like it!)  
iamkeikai for following the story  
and AmeYuuki for following and favoring the story!

* * *

Ahiru sat along the shore with her hand resting over her inflated stomach. Human pregnancy was very different from merfolk pregnancy. But it all amounted to the same thing, a new life. She wondered what this child was going to be. He… or she, was due soon and Ahiru and Fakir couldn't wait to meet her, or him. Ahiru looked back at the waves. It was bitter sweet looking at the ocean. Leaving home was never easy, but it has to happen sooner or later. She sighed, when suddenly a familiar face emerged above the surface.

Ahiru's face lit up at who she saw. "Freya!" The princess… oh sorry, she was queen now, crawled up on the sand to where Ahiru was sitting. She smiled back at her friend. "Hello Ahiru. How have you been?" Ahiru only glanced down at her stomach. Freya's eyes went wide, "It seems like only yesterday you and Fakir got married. You two didn't waste any time then, huh?" Ahiru turned a little red at her comment. Freya only laughed. Ahiru turned to Freya, "How have things been with the merpeople?" Freya didn't hesitate, "Better than can be expected. I never realized how much they wanted to be a part of the surface again as much as I did. We're still trying to settle how though."

"It'll be good to connect the two worlds again."Ahiru smiled. Freya placed a hand on Ahiru's belly, "And his generation will be the first ones to see it once more."  
Then Freya had a question, "What's it been like, being human, I mean?"  
Ahiru thought about it for a moment, "It's kind of sad sometimes. A lot of people walk around like they just move from one place to another. People hardly wear a smile, or reach out to another person. There are some that do, but more often than not, most don't do anything." Ahiru rubbed her belly, "But somehow, the few people around here, Fakir, Rue, Mytho, somehow just make it worth it. I've felt so many emotions I didn't know I had. I've… I've never been so happy to feel everything. Especially knowing that I would have lost all my emotions."

"You're even happy with all the hardships?" Freya asked. Ahiru shrugged, "Maybe not in the instant they happen. But that changes after I understand why. Well, most of the time. I guess just over all, at least I can feel this pain at all." She looked down at her stomach, "That's something I'll want this one to know." Freya smiled, "He will. Or... is it a she?" Ahiru shrugged, "Fakir knows, but I want to be surprised."

"Well I can't wait to meet them one day." Freya answered. They both looked over to the sunset. Freya sighed, "I'd better head back. The merfolk will be wondering where their queen has gone to." She gave Ahiru a hug, "Let me know when she's due."  
Ahiru hugged her back, "I will. But I can't guarantee it'll be a she." "Good enough for me. I'll see you soon Ahiru!"

"Good bye Freya, see you soon!"

And Freya submerged herself back into the waves.


End file.
